MIND diet cuts dementia risk by 25%, study finds

Following a healthy eating plan might help lower the risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. A recent study involving nearly 93,000 adults across the United States showed that people who followed the MIND diet were less likely to develop age-related brain diseases. Even those who adopted the diet later in life still saw strong benefits.

This research comes at a time when dementia is affecting more families each year. As the population grows older, the number of dementia cases is expected to increase sharply. That has led scientists to explore lifestyle factors—especially diet—as a possible way to protect brain health.

The MIND diet stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. It blends two well-known eating plans: the Mediterranean diet and the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet. The goal is to support brain health by emphasizing certain food groups shown to help cognitive function.

This diet encourages people to eat more leafy green vegetables, berries, whole grains, nuts, olive oil, and fish. It also recommends eating less red meat, butter, cheese, pastries, sweets, and fried food. In short, it promotes foods high in nutrients and low in saturated fats.

According to researchers, this approach may offer stronger protection against dementia than general healthy eating guidelines. What sets the MIND diet apart is its specific focus on brain-healthy foods.

The research was led by Song-Yi Park, PhD, an associate professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She and her colleagues used data from the Multiethnic Cohort Study, which began in the 1990s. The study included adults aged 45 to 75 at the time they first reported their dietary habits. Researchers followed their health records to see who would later develop Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias.

In total, over 21,000 participants developed some form of dementia. But when researchers compared diet scores, they found that those with the highest MIND diet adherence had a 9% lower risk of dementia compared to those with the lowest adherence.

Not all groups saw the same results. The strongest protective effects were found among African American, Latino, and White participants. For these groups, dementia risk dropped by about 13% for those who followed the diet closely. The connection was less clear for Japanese American and Native Hawaiian participants. This suggests that the diet’s benefits may vary depending on cultural food preferences and underlying health patterns.

Still, the overall trend was encouraging. “Our study findings confirm that healthy dietary patterns in mid to late life and their improvement over time may prevent Alzheimer’s and related dementias,” Park said. “This suggests that it is never too late to adopt a healthy diet to prevent dementia.”

One key part of the study looked at how diet changes over time impacted dementia risk. Researchers found that people who improved their MIND diet score by at least one standard deviation over a 10-year period had a 25% lower risk of developing dementia. This was compared to people whose scores dropped by the same amount.

This trend held steady across racial and ethnic groups—with the exception of Native Hawaiians—and was similar for people both younger and older than 60 at the start of the study.

In other words, improving your diet in your 50s, 60s, or even later can still make a real difference. That’s a hopeful message, especially for those who feel like it might be too late to change their eating habits.

The fact that the MIND diet worked better for some groups than others raises important questions about the role of cultural food traditions in brain health. For example, Asian American participants did not see the same level of benefit, but they also tend to have lower rates of dementia overall. That could mean their traditional diets already include protective elements that the MIND diet doesn’t capture.

Park pointed out that “a tailored approach may be needed when evaluating different subpopulations’ diet quality.” She suggested that future research should look more closely at how various cultural diets influence brain health. This could help design more personalized nutrition plans that match each group’s unique dietary habits and health needs.

It’s also worth noting that this study was observational. That means it shows a strong link between diet and dementia, but it can’t prove that diet directly causes the change. Park and her team called for further intervention studies to test the effects more directly.

The MIND diet has 15 dietary components.

10 brain-healthy food groups:

5 unhealthy food groups:

Other suggestions for nutritional adjustment include the following:

As dementia rates continue to climb, the study offers a practical way to reduce risk: make smarter food choices. The results suggest that even modest improvements in eating habits can protect the brain—especially when those changes last over time.

The research also highlights the importance of starting healthy habits sooner rather than later. But for those who begin later in life, the findings show it’s not too late to benefit. Whether you’re adding more berries to your breakfast, switching to olive oil, or eating more leafy greens, these steps could help safeguard your memory as you age.

Even if the diet doesn’t work the same for everyone, the overall message is clear. What you eat matters—not just for your heart or waistline, but for your brain too.

Note: The article above provided above by The Brighter Side of News.

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