Submitted By Amy Sercel MS RD CD
Edited By Marcia Bristow MS RDN CSSD CD
Are you looking for a diet that will be good
for your brain and heart, could help you lose weight, and is easy? Look no farther! The US News and World Report recently rated the
MIND (Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) diet
the easiest diet to follow and the second best overall diet after the DASH diet.
The MIND diet was originally designed to
reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, but has also been rated
well for heart health, weight loss, and diabetes.2,3
The MIND diet is a combination of the
Mediterranean and DASH diets. While each
of those diets has been shown to keep your mind healthy as you age, neither was
specifically intended to prevent dementia.
Enter the MIND diet, which pulls together certain aspects of each diet
to form one meal plan especially designed to keep your brain healthy. One study found that people who followed the
MIND diet more strictly scored the same as someone 7 ½ years younger than them
on cognitive function tests.4
The MIND diet focuses specifically on foods
and nutrients known to decrease inflammation and slow the loss of brain cells.4,5 Some of the foods it highlights are high in Vitamin E and the essential
fatty acid DHA, which are both antioxidants known to protect the brain. The diet is ultimately designed to help you shift
towards eating more unsaturated fats and less saturated and trans fat.5
If you’re interested in following the MIND
diet, its recommendations are straightforward.
They are based on a 2000 calorie meal plan, so if your energy needs are
higher or lower, speak to a registered dietitian who can adjust your serving
needs. According to the meal plan, you
should eat: 1, 4
- Three servings of whole grains per day. One serving of grains would be a slice of bread, a cup of dry cereal, or ½ cup of cooked rice, pasta, or hot cereal. Eat oatmeal for breakfast and a sandwich on whole wheat bread for lunch and you’ve met this recommendation!
- Six servings of leafy green vegetables per week. This means nearly every day, aim to include two cups of spinach, kale, dark green lettuce, cabbage, or broccoli in your diet. Try a salad as an appetizer for dinner!
- At least one serving of other vegetables per day. A serving of vegetables is about 1 cup. Adding veggies to your sandwich, snacking on hummus and carrots, or pureeing vegetables to add to a soup or sauce are all great ways to do this.
- At least two servings of berries per week. Unlike the DASH or Mediterranean diets, the MIND diet singles out blueberries for their antioxidant properties. A serving of fresh fruit is 1 cup.
- One serving of fish and two servings of poultry per week. A serving of meat, fish, or poultry is 3 ounces (about the size of a deck of cards or the palm of your hand).
- Three servings of beans per week. One-quarter cup of cooked beans is considered equal to 1 ounce of meat, so one serving of beans is about ¾ cup of cooked beans. Add beans to a salad, or use them to replace meat in a taco or wrap.
- Five servings of nuts per week. One serving of nuts weighs ½-ounce – if you’re eating almonds, this equates to about 11 almonds. Nuts are high in calories because of the unsaturated fat they contain, so it’s important not to go overboard when you snack on them!
- One glass of wine per day. The calories in wine, and any alcoholic beverage, can add up quickly! If you choose to follow this recommendation, make sure you limit yourself to one 5-fluid ounce glass, or about ½ cup, each night, and that you aren’t eating more calories than you need to maintain a healthy weight each day.
Like all diets, the MIND diet also suggests
that you limit some foods:4
- Eat less than four servings of red meat per week.
- Eat a 1 ½-ounce serving of cheese less than once a week.
- Eat fried or fast food less than once per week. As a rule, the less fried and fast food you eat, the better. A cheeseburger with large fries and a soda contains over 1000 calories, so it will be hard to stay within your calorie limit on any day you eat fast food.6 If you do go out for fast food, stick with a quarter-pound hamburger or a grilled chicken sandwich, a small order of fries, and water instead of soda.
- Pastries or other sweets should be enjoyed less than five times per week. As with fast food, when eating sweets, the fewer you eat, the better. Since most desserts come in huge servings, you could try splitting one with a friend! If you do want a sweet treat, eat ¼ cup of ice cream, two 2-inch cookies, or a ½-inch wide slice of cake.7
- Use less than one tablespoon of butter each day. Use olive oil instead, but make sure to limit your overall intake to about 5-7 teaspoons per day.8
The MIND diet was rated the easiest diet to
follow because these recommendations are so flexible. You can still enjoy sweets, fast foods, and
red meats, but less often and in smaller portions than with the standard
American diet. Even better, you don’t
have to follow the diet strictly to get some
benefit from it! Researchers found that
even people who had “moderate” adherence to the diet lowered their risk of
developing Alzheimer’s by 35% compared to those who did not follow the diet at
all.2,4 This factor really separates the MIND diet from the Mediterranean
and DASH diets; to get significant health benefits from those diets, it looks
like you have to follow them pretty carefully.4
If you’re in the mindset of trying the MIND
diet, start out by making a few changes at a time. Just remember not to go overboard with some
of the higher-calorie recommendations, such as adding nuts and wine to your
diet. Having a good idea of the number
of calories you need to maintain a healthy weight and the number of calories
you eat every day will allow you to plan a nutritious diet that incorporates
some of the MIND diet’s suggestions without leading to weight gain. In the end, it could be a great step for
maintaining your brain, heart, and overall health!
References:
1. Miller JT. The New MIND Diet May Help
Prevent Alzheimer’s. The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jim-t-miller/the-new-mind-diet-may-hel_b_10435866.html.
Published 52:14 400AD. Accessed August 25, 2016.
2. MIND diet
repeatedly ranked among best: Included seven times in U.S. News & World
Report’s 2016 “Best Diets.” ScienceDaily.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160105134102.htm. Accessed August
22, 2016.
3. MIND Diet: What To
Know | US News Best Diets. http://health.usnews.com/best-diet/mind-diet.
Accessed August 22, 2016.
4. Morris MC, Tangney
CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT. MIND diet associated with
reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimers Dement J Alzheimers
Assoc. 2015;11(9):1007-1014. doi:10.1016/j.jalz.2014.11.009.
5. Food for Thought:
The MIND Diet — Fighting Dementia With Food - Today’s Dietitian Magazine.
http://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/090115p28.shtml. Accessed August 22,
2016.
6. Urban LE, Roberts
SB, Fierstein JL, Gary CE, Lichtenstein AH. Temporal Trends in Fast-Food
Restaurant Energy, Sodium, Saturated Fat, and Trans Fat Content, United
States, 1996–2013. Prev Chronic Dis. 2014;11. doi:10.5888/pcd11.140202.
7. Authority U of WH
and C. Sweets and Desserts. UW Health.
http://www.uwhealth.org/living-with-diabetes/sweets-and-desserts/10208.
Accessed September 9, 2016.
8. All about Oils.
Choose MyPlate. https://www.choosemyplate.gov/oils. Published February 24,
2015. Accessed August 30, 2016.
