Eating a
Mediterranean-style dietappears to reduce damage to small blood vessels in the
brain, a new study says.
Researchers tracked
the brain health of almost a thousand people who completed a questionnaire that
scored how closely they followed a Mediterranean-type regimen. This diet
emphasizes plant-based foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and
nuts, and using olive oil rather than fats like butter, according to the
American Heart Association. The diet discourages eating red meat more than a
few times a month, if at all, and advises taking in moderate amounts of fish
and poultry. Red wine, in moderation, is optional.
The researchers found
that about 27 percent of the participants scored relatively low (ranging from
0-3 on a 10-point scale) in terms of keeping to this type of diet, while about
26 percent scored relatively high, from 6 to 9 points.
The people enrolled in
the study also underwent brain MRI scans to measure "white matter
hyperintensity" volume, which is a marker of small vessel damage in the
brain.
The brain scans
revealed a lower burden of white matter hyperintensities in people with higher
Mediterranean-diet scores, even after researchers took other risk factors like smoking, high blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels into
account.
"The current
study suggests a possible protective association between increased consumption
of a [Mediterranean diet] and small vessel damage," wrote the researchers,
who were led by Hannah Gardener, of the University of Miami Miller School of
Medicine.
The new research
appears in the February issue of the journal Archives of Neurology.
One expert said the
study supports the notion that a healthy diet helps the brain.
"The study
supports recommending the Mediterranean diet to help reduce cerebrovascular
disease as measured by small vessel changes seen on brain MRI scans," said
Dr. Keith Siller, an assistant professor in the departments of neurology and
psychiatry and medical director of the Comprehensive Stroke Care Center at NYU
Langone Medical Center, in New York City.
He also noted that
"the benefits of the diet appear to be separate from previously assumed
secondary effects on lowering blood pressure, cholesterol or glucose levels,
although there was a possible connection with emphasis on monounsaturated fats
in the Mediterranean diet in the form of olive oil versus consumption of
saturated fats in other diet types."
Indeed, the authors'
own analysis suggests that the only component of the Mediterranean diet that
was independently associated with the marker for brain-vessel damage was the
ratio of monounsaturated to saturated fat.
But they concluded it
was likelier that the overall diet — rather than any specific nutrients — might
somehow affect the brain.
Another expert agreed
that lifestyle, including diet, is key to brain health.
"This just adds
to the building body of evidence of the power of lifestyle changes, especially
the Mediterranean diet, in disease modification and prevention, " said Dr.
Robert Graham, an internist at Lenox Hill Hospital, in New York City.
Previous research has
suggested that eating a Mediterranean diet is associated with a reduced risk of
metabolic syndrome, coronary heart disease, stroke and thought and memory
disorders.