What you eat has a serious impact on how your brain ages \u2014 and a new study says a certain diet could greatly reduce your dementia risk.<\/p>\n
Healthy eating has long been shown to improve cognitive performance and stave off degenerative disorders like Alzheimer\u2019s, but recent research suggests a specific kind of healthy dining reigns supreme in the battle against dementia, particularly for those predisposed to decline.<\/p>\n
Researchers from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care<\/a> followed nearly 2,000 older adults over age 60 who didn\u2019t have dementia for 15 years. <\/p>\n Recent research suggests a specific kind of healthy dining reigns supreme in the battle against dementia, particularly for those predisposed to decline. LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n They looked at the effects of three diets: <\/p>\n The Alternate Mediterranean Diet (AMED)<\/p>\n The Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI)<\/p>\n The reversed Empirical Dietary Inflammatory Index (rEDII), a scientific scoring system used to assess whether overall food intake triggers or mitigates inflammation<\/p>\n For the purposes of this study, people following the rEDII protocol prioritized foods known to reduce inflammation, a hallmark of Alzheimer\u2019s<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the end of the study, they found that among participants at higher risk for Alzheimer\u2019s, only the final diet showed significant risk reduction, suggesting that focusing on anti-inflammatory foods is key to preventing Alzheimer\u2019s in those who are predisposed to it.<\/p>\n \u201cAn anti-inflammatory diet is great for the prevention and slowing the progression of Alzheimer\u2019s disease,\u201d Emily Case, registered dietitian at Northwell Health, told The Post. <\/p>\n Case stated that previous research has established that eating plans like the\u00a0DASH diet<\/a> (a heart-healthy plan to lower blood pressure, reduce cholesterol and prevent chronic diseases) and the\u00a0Mediterranean diet (which prioritizes whole foods, fresh produce, whole grains and healthy fats) can boost brain health as we age.<\/p>\n Case notes that these diets can prevent and delay, but not reverse, cognitive decline.<\/p>\n Oxidative stress, which mainly arises from chronic inflammation, speeds up aging and fuels chronic diseases like\u00a0Alzheimer\u2019s, cancer, and diabetes.<\/p>\n Previous research has shown that dietary patterns such as the DASH and Mediterranean diets can reduce dementia risk. NDABCREATIVITY \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n Case explained that inflammation is a bit like a bodily bonfire, and what we consume can stoke or dampen it. <\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s\u00a0something that we need to keep in mind when we choose the foods that we do to eat,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n When it comes to prioritizing anti-inflammatory foods, Case recommends antioxidant-rich berries and dark leafy greens, as well as foods high in omega-3s, such as salmon and walnuts.<\/p>\n \u201cThen there\u2019s fiber:\u00a0whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds. And then healthy fats. avocados, olive oil, and\u00a0nuts,\u201d she said. \u201cAnything that improves our heart health will also reduce inflammation in our body.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s critical for those with a family history of Alzheimer\u2019s to focus on the foods they eat, she added.<\/p>\n \u201cAn anti-inflammatory diet is great for the prevention and slowing the progression of Alzheimer\u2019s disease,\u201d Emily Case, registered dietitian at Northwell Health, told The Post. LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest thing people with a family history of Alzheimer\u2019s disease can do is really change their diet and lifestyle, or\u00a0at least optimize\u00a0it. We can really change the path of where our brain health goes based on what we eat,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n In addition to optimizing nutrition, she recommends prioritizing sleep and reducing the frequency of red meat consumption and meals high in saturated fat: \u201cReally optimize your plate and your lifestyle to elongate the good part of life.\u201d<\/p>\n While she underscores that cognitive decline cannot be reversed, she maintains it is possible to improve symptoms through thoughtful eating.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u00a0might be too late to cure what you might already be experiencing, but you sure can prevent a more aggressive progression by improving your diet,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Across the country,\u00a0one in 10 older adults<\/a>\u00a0is already living with dementia. The number of new cases each year is\u00a0expected to double<\/a>\u00a0in the coming decades, climbing from roughly 514,000 in 2020 to a staggering 1 million by 2060.<\/p>\n The toll is significant: Dementia costs the US an estimated\u00a0$781 billion<\/a>\u00a0in 2025 alone, and it contributes to more than\u00a0100,000 deaths<\/a>\u00a0annually.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What you eat has a serious impact on how your brain ages \u2014 and a new study says…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":726725,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[1103,186,97,21437,269,3284,673],"class_list":["post-726724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-dementia","tag-exclusive","tag-health","tag-mediterranean-diet","tag-nutrition","tag-study-says","tag-wellness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/726724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=726724"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/726724\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/726725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=726724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=726724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=726724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}