Adherence to MIND Diet, Genetic Susceptibility, and Incident Dementia in Three US Cohorts

Abstract

Adherence to Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) may lower the risk of dementia by impacting immunity and cholesterol, which are pathways also implicated by genome-wide association studies of Alzheimer’s Dementia (AD). We examined whether adherence to the MIND diet could modify the association of genetic risk for AD with incident dementia. We used three ongoing US cohorts: Chicago Health and Aging Project (CHAP, n = 2449), Rush Memory and Aging Project (MAP, n = 725), and Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study (WHIMS, n = 5308). Diagnosis of dementia was based on clinical neurological examination and standardized criteria. Repeated measures of global cognitive function were available in MAP and CHAP. Self-reported adherence to MIND was estimated using food-frequency questionnaires. Global and pathway-specific genetic scores (GS) for AD were derived. Cox proportional hazard, logistic regression, and mixed models were used to examine associations of MIND, GS, and GS-MIND interactions with incident dementia and cognitive decline. Higher adherence to MIND and lower GS were associated with a lower risk of dementia in MAP and WHIMS and a slower rate of cognitive decline in MAP (p < 0.05). MIND or GS were not associated with incident dementia or cognitive decline in CHAP. No gene–diet interaction was replicated across cohorts. Genetic risk and MIND adherence are independently associated with dementia among older US men and women.

MIND Dietary Pattern and Its Association with Cognition and Incident Dementia in the UK Biobank

“…Since 2015, MIND has been derived in other populations, often with modifications to account for diet assessment tools and differences in dietary behaviors. To our knowledge, seventeen population studies based in the US, Sweden, France, Australia, Spain, Netherlands, Brazil and Israel have investigated the relationship between MIND and cognitive health [ 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 ]. Five studies examined cognitive abilities [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]; four reported better cognitive performance with greater MIND adherence [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ], while the fifth reported a cross-over interaction with income level [ 8 ].…”

“…Five studies examined cognitive abilities [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]; four reported better cognitive performance with greater MIND adherence [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ], while the fifth reported a cross-over interaction with income level [ 8 ]. Twelve studies examined cognitive decline [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ]; seven reported slower declines in one or more cognitive abilities with greater MIND adherence [ 9 , 10 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ], while another reported a similar pattern but only among a subset of older participants [ 11 ]. Four independent population studies examined incident dementia [ 2 , 16 , 18 ]; two reported a significantly lower risk of dementia with greater MIND adherence [ 2 , 16 ]; and a third also reported a lower risk of dementia, but the association waned with longer follow-up [ 18 ].…”

Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay diet and risk of dementia: three prospective studies and meta-analysis of cohort studies

“…We screened 258 studies and included eleven cohort findings from six eligible studies (including this study)[18,21,46–48]. Specifically, we included the two largely non-overlap sub-cohorts in the Rotterdam Study, and excluded the analyses on Memory and Aging Project in the study of Vu et al because it included same sample as in the study of Morris et al The characteristics of the included studies were shown in Supplemental table 8.…”

“…We screened 258 studies and included eleven cohort findings from six eligible studies (including this study) [18,21,[46][47][48]. Specifically, we included the two largely…”

Systematic Review on the Potential Effect of Berry Intake in the Cognitive Functions of Healthy People

“…The Mediterranean-Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets with selected modifications based on the most compelling evidence in the diet-dementia field. The MIND diet features the consumption of vegetables (particularly, green leafy vegetables), berries, extra-virgin olive oil, nuts, whole grains, and low-fat sources of protein [ 8 , 9 , 10 ]. Concerning berries, their neuroprotective actions appear to be due to a group of molecules called flavonoids, and in particular anthocyanins, contained in many berries.…”