Progressive loss of memory, cognitive abilities that begin to be altered (language, calculation, orientation) and that in turn modify the routines of those who manifest the symptoms, but also of their environment. Although age is the main risk factor for dementia – Alzheimer’s is the most common type – the disease is not an inevitable consequence and some lifestyle measures can help protect the brain .
According to the World Health Organization, several studies show that the risk of suffering from dementia can be reduced through regular exercise, avoiding cigarettes and excessive alcohol consumption, with a healthy diet and a controlled weight, and also keeping key parameters for vascular health under control: blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose.
Likewise, other potentially modifiable risk factors are depression, low educational level, social isolation and cognitive inactivity.
Now, a recent study supported by the Alzheimer’s Association, the European Social Fund, and the Greek Ministry of Health and Social Solidarity, the results of which were published in the American Neurological Association (AAN) journal Neurology , has provided new insights about how an anti-inflammatory diet might contribute to cognitive health.
Fruits and vegetables, pillars of any healthy eating pattern.
Nutritional tools
The paper’s authors explain that as people age , inflammation within their immune system increases, affecting cells.
This disorder, they point out, has been associated with cognitive impairment and related to the origin of dementia. Since diet can modulate systemic inflammation, they believe that diet can be a “valuable tool” to counteract the risks associated with cognitive decline and dementia.
“There may be some powerful nutritional tools in your house to help fight inflammation that may contribute to brain aging,” said study author Nikolaos Scarmeas, of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece, and a member of the AAN.
He added: “Diet is a modifiable lifestyle factor and could play a role in fighting inflammation, one of the biological pathways that contributes to the risk of dementia and cognitive decline later in life.”
Coffee and tea, included among foods with anti-inflammatory properties.
Brain and food
To try to investigate this link, Scarmeas and his team carried out a study in Greece involving more than 1,000 people over 73 years of age , which aimed to explore the associations between the inflammatory potential of the diet and the risk of dementia in adults greater.
Each of the volunteers answered a food frequency questionnaire, which sought information on the main food groups consumed in the previous month, including dairy products, cereals, fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, legumes (beans, lentils, peas), fats added, alcoholic beverages and sweets.
The inflammatory potential of the diet was evaluated using a score that considers 45 dietary parameters with levels of proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the blood. Higher values ​​indicated a more proinflammatory diet.
The researchers divided the participants into three equal groups: those with the lowest dietary inflammation scores, medium scores, and highest scores.
The group with the lowest inflammation scores, that is, those following a more anti-inflammatory diet, ate an average of 20 servings of fruit per week, 19 of vegetables , 4 of legumes , and 11 cups of coffee or tea .
At the other extreme, those who ate a more inflammatory diet ate a much lower average of these foods: 9 servings of fruit, 10 of vegetables, two of legumes and nine of coffee or tea.
The researchers followed each participant for an average of three years. During that time, 6% developed dementia. Compared to those who ate a less inflammatory diet (with more fruits and vegetables, legumes, coffee and tea), those who ate a more inflammatory diet were three times more likely to develop dementia , the article states.
“Our results bring us closer to characterizing and measuring the inflammatory potential of people’s diets,” Scarmeas said. “That, in turn, could help inform more personalized and accurate dietary recommendations and other strategies to maintain cognitive health,” she added.
Since this was an observational study and not a clinical trial, the research can’t prove that eating an anti-inflammatory diet prevents brain aging and dementia—it just shows an association. The authors also point out that studies with longer follow-ups are needed to confirm and replicate these findings.
Legumes, a nutrient-dense source of vegetable protein.
The MIND diet
The emphasis on the consumption of fruits, vegetables and legumes, three of the highlighted foods (along with tea and coffee) within the less inflammatory diets analyzed in the recent study, are also among those promoted by the MIND diet, recommended for a long time time to reduce the risk of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and other dementias, due to its neuroprotective effects.
The MIND diet combines aspects of two very popular diets, the Mediterranean diet and the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet.
An article from the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, United States) specifies 15 guidelines for following the MIND diet:
- At least three servings of whole grains a day.
- Leafy green vegetables (such as salad) at least six times a week.
- Other vegetables at least once a day.
- Berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries) at least twice a week.
- Red meat less than four times a week.
- Fish at least once a week.
- Poultry at least twice a week.
- Legumes more than three times a week.
- Nuts at least five times a week.
- Fried or fast food less than once a week.
- Mainly olive oil for cooking.
- Less than a tablespoon of butter or margarine a day.
- Less than one serving of cheese a week.
- Fewer servings of sweets per week.
- No more than one glass of wine or other alcoholic beverage per day.
