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The best food to protect against stroke and dementia
The rate of Alzheimer’s disease in our country is skyrocketing, stealing the memories and ravaging the lives of over five and a half million Americans.
And, if you’re a woman, you’re at even higher risk – that’s because over two-thirds of Alzheimer’s victims are women.
Luckily, researchers at Rush University Medical Center have discovered a diet that not only helps prevent Alzheimer’s but can even help ward off dementia in stroke survivors, who are twice as likely as the general population to develop dementia.
Let’s take a look…
A combo of two well-known diets
The diet, known as the MIND diet, is short for Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay.
It’s a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets – diets that have been found to reduce the risk of heart problems, like hypertension, heart attack and stroke.
And, it’s now showing its power against Alzheimer’s.
In fact, one study showed that the people who most closely stuck to the MIND diet cognitively functioned as if they were 7.5 years younger than the least adherent group. They actually turned back the clock on their brain functioning by a full seven and a half years just by changing the way they ate!
Not only was the diet associated with reduced Alzheimer’s risk in seniors who adhered to its recommendations, even people who moderately adhered had reduced risk of Alzheimer’s and cognitive decline.
And, a new study that followed over 100 seniors who had previously suffered a stroke for an average of almost six years discovered that those whose diets scored highest on the MIND diet score had substantially slower rates of cognitive decline than those who scored lowest.
So, what is this MIND diet?
The MIND diet has 15 dietary components, including 10 “brain-healthy food groups” and five unhealthy groups — red meat, butter, cheese, pastries and sweets, and fried or fast food.
To follow the diet, here’s what you need to eat and drink each day:
- At least three servings of whole grains
- A green leafy vegetable and one other vegetable
- A glass of wine
- A snack of nuts
You should also have beans every other day or so, eat poultry and berries at least twice a week and have fish at least once a week.
And, remember, the diet is also about what you shouldn’t eat.
- Limit butter to less than 1 1/2 teaspoons a day (substitute with olive oil instead)
- Eat less than five servings a week of sweets and pastries
- Only have one serving per week or less of whole-fat cheese and fried or fast food
The researchers said to think of the diet as “A way to supercharge the nutritional content of what we eat. The goal is to emphasize foods that will not only lower our risk of heart attacks and stroke but make our brains as resilient as possible to cognitive decline.”
Losing your memories to Alzheimer’s and dementia doesn’t have to be an inevitable part of aging, even if you’re at higher risk due to a past stroke. Turn back the clock for a younger, healthier brain with the MIND diet and preserve the memories that make you who you are.
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Sources:
- 2017 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts And Figures — Alzheimer’s Association
- MIND diet may slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors — Rush University Medical Center