🧠 MIND Diet and Structural Brain Health Among Older Adults

Eating for Healthier Brain Aging 🥦🍓🐟

A healthy diet like the MIND diet may help protect memory by reducing harmful brain changes tied to aging and dementia.

Published In: JAMA Network Open
Date: August 2025
Authors: Agarwal et al.
Link to Study: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2837334

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Summary

This study examined over 800 older adults and found that those who closely followed the MIND diet – a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets – had fewer harmful brain changes associated with aging and dementia, including hippocampal sclerosis (HS) and neuron loss. These findings are based on detailed brain autopsies and suggest that eating brain-healthy foods over many years may lower the risk of memory problems later in life.

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Key Takeaways

✅ People with higher MIND diet scores had a 22% lower risk of hippocampal sclerosis (HS)
✅ The MIND diet was also linked to less severe neuron loss in the memory-related hippocampus
✅ Adherence to the MIND diet was associated with lower odds of HS combined with LATE-NC, another dementia-related brain condition
✅ Dementia risk was partly reduced through better brain health, with HS explaining ~21% of this link
✅ Benefits remained after accounting for age, sex, genetics (APOE-ε4), Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular issues

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Why It Matters for You

Following the MIND diet – a diet rich in leafy greens, berries, nuts, fish, and whole grains, while limiting red meat, butter, and processed foods, may help preserve memory and reduce the risk of dementia. These everyday food choices could protect the brain against key aging-related changes.

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Citation

Agarwal, P., Agrawal, S., Wagner, M., et al. (2025). MIND Diet and Hippocampal Sclerosis Among Community-Based Older Adults. JAMA Network Open, 8(8), e2526089. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2837334