5 minute read
BOOST THE BRAIN WITH THE MIND DIET
BOOST THE BRAIN WITH THE MIND DIET
A DIET DESIGNED TO ENHANCE COGNITIVE HEALTH AND PREVENT DEMENTIA
By Lorne Opler, M.Ed
IT IS THE MIDDLE OF YOUR WORKDAY AND THAT 3:00 P.M. CRASH HITS – AND SO, BEGINS YOUR AFTERNOON CONVERSATION WITH YOUR STOMACH.
You: I hear you. Stop growling at me!
Stomach: You want sugar, don’t you?
C’mon, don’t you?
You: I do. I do. I do! Sour Cream Glazed. Maple Honey Dip. Double Chocolate Peanut.
Stomach: Yes! Yes! Yes!
You: No! No! No!
Until your “No!” turns to “Yes!” and you succumb to the Strawberry Vanilla Crunch staring right at you in the display case. And so, it goes. That sugar rush that leaves you feeling temporarily satisfied but only more lethargic when you crash again.
We know sugar is bad for us. We know that excess sugar is stored as fat. We know it can increase the risk of diabetes. But what is the relation between sugar and the brain? The brain is the most energy demanding organ in our body. It gets its fuel from glucose. In fact, 60% of the glucose broken down from carbohydrates goes straight to the brain. So, sugar is essential to fuel the brain.
Problem is, Canadians consume approximately 110 grams of sugar per day, according to Diabetes Canada. That is 26 teaspoons! And that is a problem for our brain because a growing body of evidence is showing that overconsumption of added sugar (think pop, chocolate bars, commercially prepared cakes, cookies, and donuts) can create cognitive dysfunction. How so?
For one, it affects our “spatial memory” which refers to our brain’s ability to store and retrieve information pertaining to our environment and how to navigate in that environment. (Think about how you got to work today and remembered how to get home. That is spatial memory).
Moreover, researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina have recently found that elevated intake of sugar (leading to higher levels of blood glucose) can prompt an accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain. These plaques have long been associated with the risk and development of Alzheimer’s disease.
Enter the MIND Diet.
Research has shown the MIND diet can improve cognitive health and memory and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease by as much as 53% if followed appropriately.
So, what is the MIND Diet?
MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay.
The MIND diet is a combination of two other similar and researched diets: the DASH diet and the Mediterranean diet. The DASH diet (Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension) was developed through research to stop (or prevent) hypertension by reducing amounts of sodium which has been shown to elevate blood pressure levels. The DASH diet places a strong emphasis on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low fat or no-fat dairy foods, lean meats, poultry, fish, nuts, seeds, beans, and healthy fats.
The Mediterranean diet is a way of eating based on the traditional foods (and drinks) of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. It is virtually identical to the DASH diet in terms of the recommended foods to consume, but it goes one step further by encouraging lifestyle habits to complement the dietary recommendations, such as getting regular exercise and the importance of sharing meals for social interaction and positive mental health.
But researchers wanted to create a diet specifically to enhance cognitive health and prevent dementia and neither the DASH nor Mediterranean diets independently achieved those goals.
Example #1: Mediterranean and DASH diets recommend eating fruit. But fruit has not been correlated with improved brain function, except for eating berries. Therefore, the MIND diet encourages consumption of all types of berries. Blueberries are high in a plant chemical known as flavonoids, specifically anthocyanidins. The anthocyanidins make their way to the hippocampus – strengthening nerve cell connections - to improve cognitive health and reduce risk of Alzheimer’s.
Example #2: Mediterranean and DASH diets emphasize vegetables but not specifically green leafy vegetables. The MIND diet does. Why? Greens, especially spinach, collards, kale, and lettuce are positively associated with slower cognitive decline. Why is that? Leafy greens are high in Vitamin K, which research has shown boosts cognitive health. Greens are also high in folate (Vit B-9). Folate is necessary to clear the amino acid, homocysteine, from the blood. High homocysteine levels are thought to increase the risk of cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Recommendations for the MIND diet include:
• Seven 1-cup servings of leafy green vegetables weekly.
• Five ½-cup servings of berries weekly.
• Whole grains and other vegetables daily.
• Snacking on nuts most days and eating a ½-cup of beans every other day.
• Poultry and a ½-cup serving of berries (blueberries are best) at least twice weekly.
• Fish at least once a week.
• Extra-virgin olive oil (two tablespoons daily, at different meals).
• Minimal red meat and meat products.
• Fewer than five sweets or pastries weekly.
• Consume two single-ounce servings or less of full-fat cheese weekly.
So impressive is the MIND diet, that the well-regarded American newsmagazine U.S. News and World Report placed it in the top three in its ranking of the 30 most popular diets overall in 2024. It is no coincidence that #1 and #2 on the list were the MIND diet’s progenitors - the Mediterranean diet (#1) and the DASH diet (#2).
Until more definitive treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease are developed, the best bets to protect our brain health lie in lifestyle modifications. That is why anyone concerned about healthy cognition should consider adopting the MIND diet as part of an overall strategy for better memory into our later years.
