As we age, physical and psychological problems become more and more inevitable, and some health problems are even irreversible – such as Alzheimer's disease. Aging human brain tissue sometimes produces abnormal clumps of protein, which are hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease, which includes Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. How can we protect the brain from these effects (even if it is delayed) is good?
Researchers at Rush University Medical Center found that even if protein deposits (amyloid plaques and tangles) appear in the brains of older adults, they may benefit from a specific diet called "MIND Diet." Plaques and tangles are a pathological phenomenon found in the brain that accumulates between nerve cells and often interferes with thinking and problem-solving abilities.
Developed by the late Rush nutrition epidemiologist Martha Clare Morris, ScD, and her colleagues, the MIND diet is a hybrid of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet (a dietary pattern that stops high blood pressure, also known as the Deshu diet). Previous studies have found that the MIND diet reduces a person's risk of Developing Alzheimer's disease dementia.
A Paper published Sept. 14 in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease found that study participants who moderately followed a MIND diet later in life did not have any cognitive problems.
For the study, the researchers examined the association between diet and brain pathology and cognitive function in older adults — from the start of the study to death, who participated in the Rush Alzheimer's Center's ongoing Memory and Aging Program, which began in 1997 with mostly white participants who had no confirmed dementia at the start of the study, who all agreed to undergo an annual clinical evaluation before they died and to undergo brain dissection after death.
The researchers tracked 569 participants who were asked to complete annual assessments and cognitive tests to see if they had memory and thinking problems. Beginning in 2004, participants received an annual questionnaire about the frequency of the 144 foods they ate in the previous year.
Using questionnaire answers, the researchers gave each participant a MIND diet score based on how often they ate specific foods. The MIND diet contains 15 dietary components, including 10 "brain healthy food groups" and 5 unhealthy groups — red meat, butter and margarine, cheese, pastries and candy, and fried foods or fast food.
To stick to and benefit from the MIND diet, a person needs to eat at least three servings of whole grains, one leafy green and one other vegetable a day — plus a glass of wine — most of the time eat nuts as a snack, eat beans every other day or so, eat poultry and berries at least twice a week, and eat fish at least once a week. It is also necessary to limit the intake of specified unhealthy foods, limit butter to less than 1 and 1/2 teaspoon per day, and consume fewer than one serving of sweets and pastries, full-fat cheese, and fried or fast food in a week.
Based on the frequency of intake in the reported healthy and unhealthy food groups, the researchers calculated the MIND diet score for each participant throughout the study period. The average of the MIND diet scores from the start of the study to the time the participants died was used for analysis to limit measurement errors. Seven sensitivity measures were calculated to confirm the accuracy of the results.
"We found that higher MIND diet scores were associated with better memory and thinking skills, independent of Alzheimer's disease pathology and other common age-related brain pathologies." Diet appears to be protective and may contribute to cognitive recovery in older adults. Dana said he was the first author of the paper, M.D., working in the Department of Gerontology and Palliative Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Rush Medical College.
"Dietary changes can affect cognitive function and the risk of developing dementia, for better or worse," he continued. "A person can make fairly simple dietary and lifestyle changes that may help slow down cognitive decline with aging and contribute to brain health."
Summary: How should I eat to prevent Alzheimer's disease?
- Healthy eating for the brain:
- At least three servings of whole grains per day
- One leafy green vegetable and one other vegetable
- Glass of red wine (can be drunk without)
- Snack with a handful of nuts
- Eat beans every other day or so
- Eat poultry and berries at least twice a week
- Eat fish at least once a week
- Foods that are not conducive to brain health:
- Red meat (pork, beef and mutton)
- Butter and margarine
- cheese
- Pastries and sweets
- Fried food or fast food
[Source of the article: Sun Shuxia Precision Diet Therapy Public Account]
Follow us for your own therapeutic regimen