This Diet Slashes Alzheimer's Risk by 53%

"We devised a diet and it worked." Indeed: After nearly a decade of research, researchers from Chicago's Rush University Medical Center have concluded that those who followed what they've termed the "MIND diet" slashed their risk of developing Alzheimer's disease by 53% as compared to those who ate differently. More good news from the study, published in Alzheimer's & Dementia: Even those who followed the diet "moderately" saw their risk cut by roughly 35%. Researchers used previous food/brain-function research to come up with the "Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay." As the name suggests, the diet marries elements of the Mediterranean and DASH diets, which have previously been found to help guard against dementia.

This study actually confirmed that the DASH and Mediterranean diets resulted in a reduced Alzheimer's risk of 39% and 54%, respectively. The huge difference was when the diets were followed moderately: Only the MIND diet returned significant results. A press release frames MIND as easier to follow, too: The Mediterranean diet, for instance, requires that fish be eaten daily. With MIND, fish only need be consumed once a week, plus: poultry and berries twice a week, nuts most days, and beans 3-4 times; everyday items include three servings of whole grains, a salad, one additional vegetable, and a glass of wine. But what you don't eat is key, too: You'll need to eat less than a single serving of cheese a week; butter, red meat, sweets, and fried/fast food also make the "almost never" list. (When it comes to your weight, your personality could be a problem.)