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Trial of the MIND diet for prevention of cognitive decline in older persons
Data from clinical trials is lacking, but results from observational research imply that dietary habits may provide protection against cognitive deterioration. The MIND diet, (Mediterranean-DASH [Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension] Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) combines Mediterranean and DASH diets with adjustments to include foods that may reduce the incidence of dementia. To compare the cognitive effects of the MIND diet with mild caloric restriction to a control diet with mild caloric restriction, Barnes et al. (2023) conducted a two-site, randomized, controlled trial with older adults without cognitive impairment but with a family history of dementia, a body-mass index (BMI) greater than 25, and a suboptimal diet. Three years of intervention or control diet were given to the participants in a 1:1 ratio. All participants received support to encourage weight loss and counseling regarding adherence to their prescribed diet. The four cognitive domain scores and the overall cognition score, which were both obtained from a battery of 12 tests, served as the key endpoints, where higher scores suggest stronger cognitive performance. The raw values from each test were transformed to z scores, averaged across all tests to get the global cognition score, and across component tests to produce the four domain scores. The change from baseline in measures of brain features determined from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a nonrandom sample of subjects was the secondary outcome. 1929 people underwent screening, and 604 were recruited; 301 were given the MIND diet, while 303 were given the control diet. 93.4% of the participants finished the experiment. Analysis of the results revealed that global cognition scores increased from baseline to year 3 in both groups, which were more pronounced in the MIND-diet group compared to the control-diet group. On MRI, the two groups showed comparable changes in total grey- and white-matter volumes, hippocampus sizes, and white-matter hyperintensities. However, the authors concluded that the MIND diet did not substantially vary from the control diet with minor calorie restriction in terms of changes in cognition and brain MRI results from baseline to year 3 among cognitively healthy participants with a family history of dementia. [NPID: Dementia, cognitive decline, older persons, diet, Mediterranean diet, MIND, DASH]
Year: 2023
