Cover Studies have repeatedly associated greater adherence to the MIND diet with lower dementia risk—but there is still room for uncertainty (Photo: Getty Images)
Studies have repeatedly associated greater adherence to the MIND diet with lower dementia risk—but there is still room for uncertainty (Photo: Getty Images)
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The MIND diet was designed to support brain health and reduce dementia risk. Here’s what studies tell us about what we should be eating
Of all the things we might do now to protect our brains decades from now, changing what we eat sounds unusually manageable. That helps explain the appeal of the MIND diet, an eating pattern developed specifically to preserve cognitive health and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
The Mediterranean–DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, shortened elegantly to MIND, was developed by researchers at Rush University in Chicago. It combines elements of two well-established healthy eating patterns—the Mediterranean diet and DASH, or Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension—with greater emphasis on foods that earlier research had associated with healthier brain ageing. The first studies of the diet, published in 2015, produced striking results: people who followed it most closely appeared to experience slower cognitive decline and substantially lower rates of Alzheimer’s disease.
A decade of additional research has made the picture considerably richer—and more complicated. Large observational studies continue to find an association between greater adherence to MIND and lower dementia risk. But the most important randomised clinical trial so far tempers that optimism.
What is the MIND diet?
The MIND diet was devised by nutritional epidemiologist Martha Clare Morris and colleagues at Rush. Rather than inventing an entirely new way of eating, the researchers took features of the Mediterranean and DASH diets and modified them according to the existing literature on foods, nutrients and cognitive aging.
It is best understood as a pattern rather than a rigid meal plan. The original system assigns a score of up to 15 points according to how closely someone’s usual diet matches ten foods or food groups considered “brain healthy” and limits five others.
Above The MIND diet component servings and scoring, adapted from Morris et al., outlines dietary recommendations for cognitive health
The MIND diet component servings and scoring, adapted from Morris et al., outlines dietary recommendations for cognitive health
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In practical terms, that means emphasising:
- Green leafy vegetables at least six times a week, plus other vegetables daily; berries at least twice a week; nuts around five times a week; and beans several times a week
- Whole grains at least three times a day, fish at least once a week and poultry at least twice a week
- Olive oil as the primary added fat
- Limiting butter, cheese, red meat, pastries and sweets, and fried or fast food
Wine was included in the original MIND score, reflecting older research linking moderate consumption with health outcomes. The major randomised MIND trial did not recommend wine, however, and the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) updated 2026 dementia risk-reduction guidelines advise reducing alcohol consumption. In short: there is no good reason for a nondrinker to begin drinking in order to “follow” MIND.
The MIND diet’s specificity is part of what distinguishes it from its parent diets. Mediterranean diets encourage fruits and vegetables broadly; MIND places unusual emphasis on berries and leafy greens. It requires much less fish than some interpretations of Mediterranean eating, which may also make it relatively easy to incorporate into an existing diet.
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The science behind the MIND diet
There is no single ingredient in the diet that researchers believe protects the brain. The argument for MIND is built around dietary patterns—and several biological pathways that may connect food with cognitive aging.
One is cardiovascular health. High blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and other vascular problems are themselves associated with dementia risk. A diet rich in vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts, fish and unsaturated fats is also broadly consistent with dietary patterns used to protect cardiovascular and metabolic health. This overlap is one reason the familiar maxim that what is good for the heart is often good for the brain has some scientific substance. The WHO’s latest dementia guidance includes both a healthy diet and management of blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar among its risk-reduction strategies.
Above Lower inflammation in the body has been linked to a diet of leafy greens, berries and olive oil (Photo: Getty Images)
Lower inflammation in the body has been linked to a diet of leafy greens, berries and olive oil (Photo: Getty Images)
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Researchers have also investigated inflammation and oxidative stress. Leafy vegetables contain nutrients and bioactive compounds including folate, vitamin E, carotenoids and flavonoids; berries are particularly rich in flavonoids; nuts and olive oil provide predominantly unsaturated fats; and fish can provide long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. These compounds have been proposed as possible contributors to the associations seen between MIND-style eating and brain health, although isolating the effect of any one nutrient is difficult.
Earlier autopsy research had linked greater MIND adherence with lower Alzheimer’s pathology, particularly beta-amyloid burden. More recent research has gone beyond cognitive tests to track changes in the structure of the living brain: in a 2026 study of 1,647 participants in the Framingham Heart Study, greater MIND adherence was associated with slower loss of grey matter and slower enlargement of the brain’s lateral ventricles over a median 12.3 years. Each three-point increase in MIND score was associated with about 20 percent less age-related grey-matter decline, which researchers calculated as roughly equivalent to 2.5 years less structural brain ageing over the study period.
That adds objective brain-imaging evidence to the case for MIND, but it still does not establish that the diet caused the difference. The study was observational, and someone who eats vegetables, fish and whole grains regularly may differ from someone who does not in countless other ways—from exercise and smoking to education, income and access to healthcare. Unfortunately, that problem follows much of the research on nutrition and dementia.
Does the MIND diet work?
The early results were striking. In the original study of 923 older adults, those who followed the MIND diet most closely had a 53 percent lower rate of developing Alzheimer’s disease than those with the lowest adherence. Another study found that people who adhered most strongly to the diet experienced slower cognitive decline.
But these were observational studies: researchers recorded what people ate and what happened to them rather than assigning them to different diets. People who eat particularly well may also exercise more, smoke less or differ in other ways that affect dementia risk.
Larger subsequent studies have generally supported the association, although with more modest estimates. A 2023 analysis covering more than 224,000 people found that those with the highest MIND adherence had about a 17 percent lower risk of dementia than those with the lowest. A 2025 multi-ethnic study of nearly 93,000 people similarly found about a 9 per cent lower risk among those with higher MIND adherence, although the strength of the association varied between groups.
Above Studies have repeatedly associated greater adherence to the MIND diet with lower dementia risk, but the strongest trial to date did not find a statistically significant cognitive advantage over its comparison diet (Image: Shawn Day/Unsplash)
Studies have repeatedly associated greater adherence to the MIND diet with lower dementia risk, but the strongest trial to date did not find a statistically significant cognitive advantage over its comparison diet (Image: Shawn Day/Unsplash)
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While that seems very promising, there is a very good reason for caution. In the strongest test so far—a three-year randomised trial involving 604 older adults at elevated risk of dementia—the results were not definitive. Cognition improved slightly among people assigned to the MIND diet, but it also improved in the comparison group, and the difference between them was not statistically significant.
A 2026 follow-up analysis adds more nuance to the research. Instead of looking only at which diet participants had originally been assigned, researchers examined how much their MIND scores actually changed during the trial. People whose diets moved further towards the MIND pattern showed greater improvements in global cognition over the three years.
That is encouraging, although the three-year trial’s primary finding still remains the same: there is no definitive proof of a significant cognitive benefit. The 2026 follow-up was a post-hoc analysis: once participants are compared according to how successfully they changed their diets rather than their randomised assignment, other differences between them can once again influence the outcome. The randomised comparison therefore remains the stronger test of whether MIND itself caused an improvement.
For now, the fairest conclusion is that MIND-style eating is increasingly and consistently associated with better cognitive outcomes and, more recently, with slower structural brain changes. Researchers have still not shown definitively that following the diet itself prevents dementia.
Bottom line: What should I be eating to prevent dementia?
The first thing to remember is the word prevent. No diet can guarantee that a person will avoid dementia: age, genetics and many other factors remain outside our control, while the causes of dementia are complex and often involve more than one type of brain pathology.
Diet is nevertheless one of several areas in which risk can potentially be modified. The WHO’s updated 2026 guidelines recommend a healthy diet alongside physical activity, avoiding tobacco, reducing alcohol, maintaining a healthy weight, staying socially and cognitively active, and managing blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. It also specifically advises against relying on vitamin B or E, omega-3 or multivitamin supplements to prevent cognitive decline in people who do not have a diagnosed deficiency.
The dietary evidence suggests that MIND is a reasonable framework for everyday eating: make vegetables, particularly leafy greens, a routine part of meals; eat beans, nuts and whole grains regularly; choose fish and other lean proteins more often; favour unsaturated fats; eat berries when they are available; and keep foods rich in saturated fat, added sugar and highly processed ingredients to a smaller share of the diet.
Above Current evidence favours an overall eating pattern rich in vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and unsaturated fats, alongside other measures that protect cardiovascular and metabolic health (Image: AI generated)
Current evidence favours an overall eating pattern rich in vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and unsaturated fats, alongside other measures that protect cardiovascular and metabolic health (Image: AI generated)
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If you look at the original study, you’ll find blueberries, kale, and foods uncommon in Asian diets in the list. Much of the MIND diet research has been conducted in Western populations, and newer studies suggest its associations may differ across cultural groups—so there is little reason to become overly literal about sticking to those foods alone. The larger principle—a predominantly plant-rich, minimally processed diet that also supports cardiovascular and metabolic health—is more reasonable than a shopping list designed in Chicago.
That larger principle may be the most useful way to think about MIND: it packages a growing body of evidence into a relatively simple way of eating and reflects the broader idea that caring for cardiovascular and metabolic health may also help protect the ageing brain.
So, bottom line: following the MIND diet won’t do any harm, and it will probably help. The science may not be strong enough yet to make it a prescription for preventing dementia, but its broader principles are well aligned with what we already know about protecting cardiovascular and metabolic health, making it a sensible framework for healthy eating.
Kristine Fonacier is a widely published journalist and author, covering lifestyle, business, politics and travel. She was the editor in chief at the Philippine editions of Esquire and Entrepreneur, and the founding editor of Grid magazine. At Tatler, she was previously the regional editor for T-Labs, Power & Purpose and Asia’s Most Influential.
