How to Eat to Reduce the Risk of Alzheimer’s

When you’re young, old age seems so distant that there are no fears attached to it.  However, as one enters boomerdom, anxiety about developing Alzheimer’s emerges, and grows with each incidental ‘senior moment’.  Perhaps it may become sufficient to induce a change in diet?  If so, here’s a plan generated by a study reported in the Archives of Neurology.  Many studies have focused on one or two single components of a diet to determine their effect on the occurrence of Alzheimer’s.  But the human diet is a combination of numerous food items, so the study referenced here has resulted in a ‘dietary pattern’ that is associated with a reduced risk of the condition. 

This was a community-based prospective study of 2148 people over 65 who were free of dementia at enrollment.  The participants were evaluated neurologically at baseline and every 1½ years for an average of 4 years.  They provided dietary information via food frequency questionnaires.

During follow-up, 253 participants developed Alzheimer’s.  One dietary pattern was significantly associated with a reduced risk of the disease – the risk in those eating this dietary pattern was 0.62-times that of those participants eating other diets.

What’s in the specific dietary pattern?  Higher intakes of salad dressing, nuts, fish, tomatoes, poultry, cruciferous vegetables, fruits, and dark and green leafy vegetables and a lower intake of high fat dairy products, red meat, organ meat, and butter.  So now you know what to do – until someone discovers something better!

P.S.  Just in!  The National Institutes of Health convened a panel to look at the evidence for preventing Alzheimer’s.  Their conclusion: "There is currently no evidence of even moderate scientific quality supporting the association of any modifiable factor [e.g. dietary supplements, use of prescription and nonprescription drugs, diet, physical activity, and social engagement] with reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease".  Still, most of the measures we’ve described in this blog over the years are “not necessarily harmful and may confer other benefits”.  I must agree.