Why the Mediterranean diet protects the brain from signs of Alzheimer’s: study | Top Vip News

Nutrition

By Brooke Steinberg

The Mediterranean diet continues to prove why it has been named the number one best diet overall by US News & World Report for seven consecutive years.

A new study published in the journal JAMA Neurology discovered that following the Mediterranean diet can keep a person’s mind sharp into old age, even if the brain shows signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

People who followed the diet scored higher on tests of cognitive functioning, despite markers of dementia in the brain after death, researchers at Rush University in Chicago found.

The Med Diet is derived from the traditional diets of 21 countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, where fresh vegetables, fruits, fish, nuts and olives are abundant. It involves eating plant-based foods, grains and lean poultry along with healthy doses of extra virgin olive oil.

While it does not focus on a specific nutrient or food group, the Med Diet emphasizes the importance of focusing on quality and filling your plate with a wide range of foods, such as fruits, vegetables, seafood, olive oil, and whole grains.

Using data from the Rush Memory and Aging Project, a study using autopsy data from 1997 to 2022 with up to 24 years of follow-up, the researchers analyzed 586 subjects who died at an average age of 91 years.

Participants reported lifestyle factors to the project, including smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise frequency, Mediterranean diet, and cognitive activity score.

The healthy lifestyle score was based on these factors and was ranked from one to five, with higher scores indicating a healthier lifestyle and better cognitive function closer to death.

These scores were compared to the cognitive function score from the test less than a year before the participant’s death.

After death, the brains were removed from the subjects’ bodies and the researchers looked for signs of amyloid beta and tau tangles, two of the main signs of Alzheimer’s.

Dementia is not a specific disease: it is a term for impaired ability to remember, think, or make decisions that interferes with daily activities, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Convention. Alzheimer’s It is the most common form of dementia.

Even if the participants’ brains showed signs of Alzheimer’s, their healthy lifestyle still seemed to protect them to some extent from cognitive decline, the study showed.

It is thought that the diet may help with cognitive decline because it is very balanced, making you feel full longer and less likely to eat junk food and snacks.

A An October 2023 study found that the Mediterranean diet may help reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder through gut microbiome.

Other recent studies have shown that those who follow the diet can reduce their chances of premature death by 29%, while women alone have been shown to be almost 25% less likely to suffer from heart disease and premature death.

A previous study from Harvard University said the Mediterranean diet was one of four common healthy eating patterns that can help reduce the risk of premature death by up to 20%.