Mediterranean Diet may be healthier for brain

The benefits of the popular Mediterranean diet might not just stop at preventing heart disease, dementia and metabolic syndrome, researchers say.

A new study suggests eating in Mediterranean style may reduce damage to small blood vessels in the brain.

In the study led by Hannah Gardner of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, researchers tracked the diets and brain scans of 966 adults with an average age of 72. The brain MRI scans measured “white matter hyperintensity” levels which indicate the degree of small vessel damage in the brain.

The results showed that those adhering more closely to a Mediterranean diet showed lower white matter hyperintensity volumes.

The diet encourages the consumption of plant-based foods such as veggies, whole grains, fruits, and fish, and little amounts of red meat and chicken.

The research team concluded that the “overall dietary pattern, rather than any of the individual components” may be more important in promoting brain health. 

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