“MIND Diet” Benefits Alzheimer’s Patients

by | Apr 26, 2016 | 2015, Alzheimer's Disease, Brain Health, Mediterranean Diet

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Participants with the highest one third of the MIND Diet scores (a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets) had a 53 % reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to those in the lowest one third.

Alzheimer’s Disease which is the most common form of dementia among older adults (1) and is the most significant contributor to the $215 billion that dementia costs our healthcare system each year (2). Fortunately, research has shown 2 types of diets to help maintain mental health. The first is the Mediterranean Diet which consists of plentiful fruits and vegetables, beans and nuts, healthy grains, fish, olive oil, and small amounts of meat and dairy, and red wine (3) and has shown to have positive effects on the Mini-Mental State Examination (4).

The other diet, called the DASH Diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is very similar to the Mediterranean Diet in that it is rich in fruits, vegetables, low fat/nonfat dairy, mostly whole grains, lean meats, fish and poultry, nuts and beans (5) and has been shown to help preserve reaction times/reflexes (6). Now a new study (7) suggests a third type of diet may help preserve mental health for Alzheimer’s patients. Called the MIND Diet (Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay), it is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets but with a special emphasis on consumption of green leafy vegetables, specifically consuming at least 6 servings per week as that has been shown to result in “significantly slower cognitive decline” (8, 9).

In the study, 923 subjects (221 males, 702 females) between the ages of 58 and 98 completed a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (10) and were followed for an average of 4.5 years. Each subject was examined every year by a medical doctor, with the criteria for diagnosing Alzheimer’s Disease being based on the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke and the Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association (11). These 923 subjects were compared to an age-matched group of subjects who were instructed to follow either the Mediterranean Diet or the DASH diet (specific data on male/female ratio and how many subjects followed either the Mediterranean Diet or DASH diet was not provided).

Over the 4.5 years of follow-up, those with the highest one-third of MIND diet scores (8.5-12.5) had a 53% decreased risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease compared to those in the lowest one-third of MIND diet score (2.5-6.5, p = .003) while those in the middle one-third (MIND diet score 7-8) had a 35% decreased risk compared to the lowest one-third of MIND diet score (p = 0.002). Only highest adherence to the Mediterranean diet (35-46 diet score) produced a benefit compared to the lowest adherance (18-29 diet score, 51% reduced Alzheimer’s risk, p = 0.01). The same was seen for the DASH diet, with only the highest adherence (5.0-8.5 diet score) producing a 40% reduced risk compared to the lowest diet score (1.0-3.5, p = .02).

For the researchers, “These data suggest that even modest adherence to the MIND diet score may have substantial benefits for the prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease. By contrast, only the highest concordance to the DASH and Med Diet diets were associated with Alzheimer’s Disease prevention” and that “high quality diets such as the Mediterranean and DASH diets can be modified, such as in the MIND diet, to provide better protection against dementia.”

Source: Morris, Martha Clare, et al. “MIND diet associated with reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s disease.” Alzheimer’s & Dementia 11.9 (2015): 1007-1014.

© 2015 The Alzheimer’s Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Posted June 30, 2015.

References:

  1. “NIH-supported study finds U.S. dementia care costs as high as $215 billion in 2010” posted on the National Institute of Aging website April 4, 2013
  2. “Prevalence of Alzheimer’s Disease” posted on the National Institute of Aging website
  3. “The Mediterranean Diet” posted on the WebMD website
  4. Martinez-Lapiscina EH, Clavero P, Toledo E, Estruch R, Salas-Salvado J, San Julian B, et al. Mediterranean diet improves cognition: the PREDIMED-NAVARRA randomised trial. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2013;84:1318–25
  5. “What is the DASH Diet?” posted on the DASH Diet website
  6. Smith PJ, Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Craighead L, Welsh-Bohmer KA, Browndyke JN, et al. Effects of the dietary approaches to stop hypertension diet, exercise, and caloric restriction on neurocognition in overweight adults with high blood pressure. Hypertension 2010;55:1331–8.
  7. Morris MC. MIND diet associated with reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimers Dement 2015 Feb 11. pii: S1552-5260(15)00017-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jalz.2014.11.009. [Epub ahead of print]
  8. Morris MC, Evans DA, Tangney CC, Bienias JL, Wilson RS. Associations of vegetable and fruit consumption with age-related cognitive change. Neurology 2006;67:1370–6
  9. Kang JH, Ascherio A, Grodstein F. Fruit and vegetable consumption and cognitive decline in aging women. Ann Neurol 2005;57:713–20
  10. Morris MC, Tangney CC, Bienias JL, Evans DA, Wilson RS. Validity and reproducibility of a food frequency questionnaire by cognition in an older biracial sample. Am J Epidemiol 2003;158:1213–7
  11. McKhann G, Drachman D, Folstein M, Katzman R, Price D, Stadlan EM. Clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease: report of the NINCDS-ADRDAWork Group under the auspices of Department of Health and Human Services Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease. Neurology 1984;34:939–44.