The Dinner Table Trick to a “Younger Brain”
You already know the Mediterranean diet -- rich in olive oil, fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts, and fish -- is excellent for heart health.
But new research shows that eating this style isn't just for your heart -- it also offers another major benefit: a slower rate of cognitive decline.
That's right -- the Mediterranean diet could be the very thing to deliver a one-two punch to keep your ticker AND your thinker going.
Participants in the study had an average age of 75.4 years and were enrolled in the Chicago Health and Aging Project, an ongoing study of people aged 65 and older. They completed cognitive function tests at 3-year intervals.
The results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, show that people who most closely adhered to the diet had brains "years younger" than people who didn't dine from the Mediterranean menu.
The researchers behind the study say the mechanisms are pretty clear. The foods in the Mediterranean diet reduce markers of oxidative stress and reduce the inflammation that plays a role in both heart disease and Alzheimer's.
People eating a Mediterranean diet also had lower rates of stroke, hypertension, and depression.
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Christine O'Brien writes the e-letter Health eTips for Dr. Wright's Nutrition and Healing.
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Comments
Lori
I've always found discussion of the Mediterranean diet interesting. In the new 2010 dietary guidelines, there is a chart that compares the typical American diet to the Mediterranean diet. And guess what? Americans actually eat more grains, and they eat more meat. Nobody tells us that. I doubt they eat all the fortified cereals and refined grains that Americans do, and their animal foods are probably not as polluted as ours. But saying they eat more grains than us and then no mention of meat isn't accurate.
Anonymous
YES AND THEY ALWAYS FORGET to mention ONE VERY IMPORTANT THING: they always walk every place they need to go (except when they go on vacation or another city..) they also have their family, friends, neighbors that help each other (talk, laugh, have fun) ... this also ITS VERY IMPORTANT!!!! for good health. AH, THEY ALSO EAT SLOWLY...not in a hurry like in US.
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