Scientists say that sticking to the MIND diet can slow the inexorable march toward old age.
The literature has suggested that people with a healthy diet have a slower biological aging process and are less likely to develop dementia, but the biological mechanisms of this protection are It has not been well understood until now.
“The focus on nutrition in dementia research is focused on how specific nutrients affect the brain,” said Dr. Schneider, associate professor of epidemiology at the Columbia School of Public Health and the Columbia Center on Aging, who led the study. said Dr. Daniel Belsky, senior author of .
“We tested the hypothesis that a healthy diet protects against dementia by slowing the overall pace of biological aging in the body.”
The MIND diet emphasizes plant-based foods (particularly berries and leafy greens) and limits animal products.
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The MIND diet combines elements of the Mediterranean diet and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, emphasizing plant foods (particularly berries and leafy greens) and reducing animal foods and saturated fats. Limit intake.
Previous studies have linked increased dietary adherence to a lower risk of dementia. But it has also been shown to have benefits for heart health, diabetes, and certain cancers.
To measure the impact of diet on aging, researchers used data from the second generation of the Framingham Heart Study, a multigenerational study aimed at identifying common factors and characteristics that contribute to cardiovascular disease. I used it.
Of the 1,644 people included in the analysis, 140 developed dementia. To measure the pace of aging, the researchers used an epigenetic clock called Dunedin PACE, developed by Belsky and colleagues at Duke University and the University of Otago.
Belsky said the clock measures how quickly a person’s body declines as they age, “kind of like a speedometer for the biological process of aging.”
“There is some strong evidence that a healthy diet can prevent dementia,” says Ian Gu, Ph.D., associate professor of neuroscience at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and the study’s other lead author. Not well understood. ” Past studies have linked both diet and dementia risk to accelerated biological aging.
“Testing the hypothesis that multisystem biological aging is the mechanism underlying the association between diet and dementia was a logical next step,” Belsky explained.
The study found that higher adherence to the MIND diet was associated with slower aging as measured by DunedinPACE and lower risk of dementia and mortality. Furthermore, slow DunedinPACE accounted for 27 percent of the association between diet and dementia and 57 percent of the association between diet and death.
The MIND diet requires you to avoid or limit fried foods and fast foods.
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“Our findings suggest that a slower pace of aging mediates part of the relationship between a healthy diet and reduced dementia risk. Therefore, monitoring the pace of aging may help prevent dementia,” said lead author Dr. Aline Thomas, Columbia Department postdoctoral fellow. Taub Institute for Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease and Brain Aging.
However, much remains unknown about the relationship between diet and dementia, she added, and more research is needed to understand this link.
MIND diet – what to eat and what to avoid
The MIND diet lists 10 foods associated with improving or slowing cognitive decline, and 5 foods to limit.
Beneficial foods include:
- Whole grains (3 or more meals a day)
- Green leafy vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, spring vegetables, kale, and salad leaves (at least once a day)
- Other vegetables (at least 1 serving per day)
- nuts (most days)
- Beans and lentils (at least 3 times a week)
- Berries such as blueberries and strawberries (at least twice a week)
- Chicken or Turkey (2 or more meals per week)
- Fish (at least 1 meal per week)
- Olive oil (as the main fat used)
- Wine (up to one small glass a day; more than this is likely to harm your health more than help it)
Foods to avoid or limit:
- Fried or fast food (less than once a week)
- Cheese (less than once a week)
- Red meat (less than 4 times a week)
- Pastries and sweets (less than 5 times a week)
- Butter (less than 1 tablespoon per day)
