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MIND What Matters: Protecting the Brain Through Diet

Chances are that you’ve heard of how the Mediterranean diet is known as one of the healthiest ways of eating.  Likewise, the DASH diet, or the Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension, is lauded for its ability to control hypertension and improve heart health.  The MIND diet, also known as the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, combines several aspects of the two diets with the aim to support healthy brain function and reduce the chances of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s as one ages. The diet is based on research studies which focused on foods that were associated with improved brain function.


The diet was developed in 2015 at by Martha Clare Morris, a nutritional epidemiologist and her research team at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. They tested the diet on 960 participants for nearly 5 years and found that the diet slowed cognitive decline with age.


Unsurprisingly, the foods that these researchers encourage are in line with Kimberly Cover Associates core elements, or "body buddies". Or perhaps more aptly as Brain Buddies! Likewise, the foods the researchers recommend limiting are also in line with our "body bullies" we discuss here at KCA.


So what foods are Brain Buddies and what foods are Brain Bullies? The general recommendation under the MIND diet is to include more of the brain buddies and less of the brain bullies below:


Brain Bullies: The MIND diet discourages you to from eating too much of these foods

  • Butter and margarine

  • Cheese

  • Red meat

  • Fried food

  • Pastries and sweets


Brain Buddies: On the MIND diet, we are encouraged to include these foods in our diet. Some of these foods might look familiar; they are also part of the Core Elements! Some foods, like wine, are recommended only in small amounts or in limited frequency.

  • Green, leafy vegetables

  • All other vegetables

  • Berries

  • Nuts

  • Olive Oil

  • Whole Grains

  • Fish

  • Beans

  • Poultry

  • Wine


Kimberly Cover Associates also has several meal ideas that support optimal brain function and health, please contact us for further details about working together to improve brain health!


References:

  1. Morris, Martha Clare et al. MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging. Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association , Volume 11 , Issue 9 , 1015 - 1022 https://www.alzheimersanddementia.com/article/S1552-5260(15)00194-6/fulltext 

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