<b><i>Objectives:</i></b> To study and compare associations of 5 dietary patterns – Mediterranean dietary pattern (MDP), Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH), Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative delay (MIND), Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI-2010), and a pro-vegetarian diet (PVD) – with cognitive function. <b><i>Patients and Methods:</i></b> A subgroup of 806 participants from the “Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra”(SUN) cohort of university graduates, &#x3e;55 years old, was interviewed with the validated Spanish Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (STICS-m) at baseline and after 2 and 6 years. For recruitment to the SUN cohort, participants completed a validated food-frequency questionnaire to calculate dietary adherence scores. These scores were used as independent variables in linear regression models (a model for each dietary pattern) to assess their association with the 6-year change in STICS-m as the dependent variable. Linear mixed models were also fitted to compare trajectories of STICS-m scores. All models were adjusted for relevant confounding factors. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Adjusted differences showed advantages in the 6-year change in STICS-m score of 0.25 (95% CI 0.04–0.45) for an increase of 1-SD (9 points) in the AHEI-2010 and of 0.27 (95% CI 0.05–0.48) for an increase of 1-SD (1.5 points) in the MIND diet. The MDP, DASH, and PVD scores yielded positive differences in their point estimates for an increase in 1-SD, but results were not statistically significant. The MIND diet appeared to modify changes in cognitive function over time. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> Our results showed a beneficial association between the MIND diet and cognitive function and suggested a benefit for the AHEI-2010 pattern. Results for the MDP, DASH, and PVD were inconclusive.

The decline in cognitive function is generally the result of the complex interaction of several factors. First of all, age, but also demographic, educational, genetic, socio-economic, and environmental determinants, including nutrition. Cognitive decline and dementia prevalence are increasing, and they are projected to continue increasing in the next decades due to the aging of the world population. Currently, there are no effective pharmacological treatments for these devastating and disabling conditions, which emphasize the key role of preventive strategies. There is compelling evidence of the role of diet and lifestyle on cognitive function. Therefore, dietary/ nutritional approaches that contribute to prevent, or slow cognitive decline may have a remarkable public health impact. Numerous studies have explored the role of dietary components and patterns on age-associated cognitive decline, with accruing evidence that combinations of foods and nutrients can have synergistic effects beyond those attributable to individual foods or nutrients. Dietary patterns show the strongest evidence for slowing the development of cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias including the Mediterranean diet, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diet, and their combination (the MedDiet-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay - MIND), among others with few positive results. There are also dietary patterns with no evidence of such effects. This review examines the evidence for the effects of some dietary patterns as neuroprotective with a potential to delay cognitive decline and the onset of dementia.

We analyzed the frequency of cognitive impairment (CI) in deceased COVID-19 patients at a tertiary hospital in Spain. Among the 477 adult cases who died after admission from March 1 to March 31, 2020, 281 had confirmed COVID-19. CI (21.1% dementia and 8.9% mild cognitive impairment) was a common comorbidity. Subjects with CI were older, tended to live in nursing homes, had shorter time from symptom onset to death, and were rarely admitted to the ICU, receiving palliative care more often. CI is a frequent comorbidity in deceased COVID-19 subjects and is associated with differences in care.

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The weak correlation between the STICS-m and the MMSE reflects moderate-low concurrent validity. Even so, the STICS-m can be regarded as an useful tool in the epidemiological setting since increasing scores appear to be able to predict a lower risk of developing dementia.