Mediterranean diet lowers alzheimer’s risk

When I hear the phrase “Mediterranean diet” it conjures an image of homegrown fruits and vegetables set out on a table in a corner of a veranda that overlooks olive orchards on a seaside hill. What that phrase DOESN’T conjure is the image of food vendors dispensing hot dogs and soft pretzels from portable food carts in midtown Manhattan.

Nevertheless, researchers from Columbia University Medical Center recently studied the dietary habits of more than 2,250 elderly New Yorkers. Two years worth of dietary data was assessed and given a Mediterranean diet score; those who ate lots of foods included in the Mediterranean diet scored higher than subjects who ate mostly hot dogs, soft pretzels and other highly processed urban delicacies.

The result: Nikolaos Scrmeas, lead author of the study, wrote, “Higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with significantly lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.”

Alzheimer’s risk was 40 percent lower among subjects who ate foods included in the Mediterranean diet when compared to subjects who ate mostly processed foods.

The primary components of the Mediterranean diet include fresh whole foods – vegetables, fruits, fish, whole grains, nuts and olive oil – that are high in omega-3 fatty acids and low on refined, simple carbohydrates. And as the Columbia study illustrates, these foods are readily available in both Tuscany and Times Square (not to mention Tallahassee, Toledo, Topeka, etc.).

Sources:
“Med Diet Could Slash Alzheimer’s Risk” Food Navigator, 4/18/06, foodnavigator.com