Snacking on Walnuts 5 Times Per Week Cuts Mortality By 14% and Boosts Cognitive Health by Super Age

 

So your incompetent? doctor didn't recommend this over a decade ago? That's a massive amount of incompetence for your board of directors to ignore!

walnuts(18 posts to October 2014)

Snacking on Walnuts 5 Times Per Week Cuts Mortality By 14% and Boosts Cognitive Health

Handwriting May Be A Window Into Your Brain Health, Study Finds by mindbodygreen

 By the time I get to assisted living I will not have done cursive wring for 80 years so this test has no meaning for me. I gave up cursive back in college when I could no longer read my notes.

Handwriting May Be A Window Into Your Brain Health, Study Finds

Study Suggests Certain Olive Oil May Help Boost Brain Function and Cognitive Health

 Does your competent? doctor have enough functioning neurons to get the dietician to put this in your diet protocol? Oh, you incompetently DON'T HAVE A DIET PROTOCOL? Why not? But you also need daily EXACT AMOUNTS! To get mine I dip bread in a mixture of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, found from Italian restaurants.

Do you prefer your doctor, hospital and board of director's incompetence NOT KNOWING? OR NOT DOING? Your choice; let them be incompetent or demand action!

OH NO! your doctor KNOWS NOTHING AND DOES NOTHING! 

Study Suggests Certain Olive Oil May Help Boost Brain Function and Cognitive Health

This diet beats out 5 others when it comes to cognitive health, study finds

 

None of them have any objective specifics(NO protocol!) so you can't be sure you're following them properly. In my opinion, pretty much useless other than whitewashing your doctor's incompetence in not knowing anything specific to get you recovered!

You'll have to ask your competent? doctor for the EXACT SPECIFIC VERSION OF THIS! You wouldn't want to do it wrong, would you? No excuses are allowed.

This diet beats out 5 others when it comes to cognitive health, study finds

A lot of healthy diets are considered to be just as good for your brain as they are for your body. But one in particular, which is usually recommended for lowering blood pressure, may be particularly good when it comes to protecting your cognitive function, a recent study suggests.

An international team of researchers looked at data from the two Nurses’ Health Studies, conducted from 1986 to 2017, and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, conducted from 1986 to 2012. That means they had data on diet and brain health from almost 160,000 adults, according to the report published in February 2026 in the journal JAMA Neurology.

They found six relatively healthy eating patterns were associated with a lower chance of participants self-reporting symptoms of cognitive decline. But one in particular showed the biggest effect: the DASH diet, which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. In the study, the people who followed the DASH diet most closely had a 41 percent lower risk of experiencing cognitive decline than people who didn’t follow the diet very closely.

This wasn’t completely surprising to the researchers. “The DASH diet’s emphasis on vegetables, nuts and whole grains while limiting sodium and sugar has been linked to lower blood pressure, and hypertension is a recognized risk factor for dementia,” said study author Kjetil Bjornevik, assistant professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “The diet is also rich in antioxidants and other nutrients that may benefit brain health.”

Although not one of the diets compared in this study, there’s an additional brain-healthy diet you might want to consider. A March 2026 study of 1,647 middle-aged and older individuals found that greater adherence to the MIND diet - a combination of the DASH diet and the popular, health-promoting Mediterranean diet - was associated with a slower decline in total gray matter volume in the brain, suggesting the diet might actually help delay structural brain aging.

One of the biggest differences between DASH and MIND is that the latter adds daily and weekly recommendations for certain foods, including vegetables, berries, nuts, seeds, beans and seafood.

Other research suggests the most adherent MIND diet followers may have a 53 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than people who don’t stick to this plan.

What the studies tell us about diet and brain health

While some of the dietary patterns included in the JAMA Neurology study were created for specific reasons - such as to control blood sugar, blood pressure or inflammation - they seem to convey benefits to the brain, too, underscoring the holistic health benefits of nutritious eating patterns.

“This reinforces the idea that sustained, overall diet quality - and the cardiovascular health it supports - may be foundational to preserving brain health over time,” said Jazba Soomro, a vascular and interventional neurologist at Memorial Hermann Mischer Neuroscience Associates in Humble, Texas.

Although the DASH diet was associated with the biggest cognitive benefit, the other eating patterns also had positive effects. Participants who followed those other eating plans were 11 to 35 percent less likely to report cognitive decline than those who didn’t follow the same eating patterns as rigorously, although the study was observational, meaning it can’t prove a causal link between the two.

“What was encouraging was the consistency across different dietary patterns," said Bjornevik, “which suggests that there is not just one right approach and that different dietary strategies can have beneficial effects on cognitive health.”

“What is good for the heart is good for the brain,” Soomro added. “It means less damage to small cerebral blood vessels, which leads to better long-term cognitive reserves.”

Why the DASH diet stands out

As Bjornevik mentioned, DASH focuses on produce, whole grains and lean proteins, while limiting sodium, sugar and saturated fat. It was developed almost 30 years ago by researchers funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. At the time, research showed adopting this style of eating lowered blood pressure and sometimes also cholesterol compared with people who continued eating a more typical American diet. High blood pressure and high cholesterol are both risk factors for heart disease.

Since then, additional benefits of the DASH diet have emerged. For example, it’s linked with improvements in asthma symptoms and a lower likelihood of kidney stones. It’s also been tied to cognitive benefits in smaller studies and more preliminary research, and it frequently ranks highly on lists of the best diets from outlets such as U.S. News & World Report.

“The diet is also associated with lower levels of inflammation, which plays a significant role in cognitive impairment,” said Christopher Weber, senior director of global science initiatives at the Alzheimer’s Association.

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In the JAMA Neurology study, the people who stuck closest to this diet had the lowest risk of cognitive decline, particularly if they were following the DASH plan between ages 45 and 54. These participants also scored highest on telephone-based cognitive assessments.

“Although cognitive decline typically manifests late in life, the underlying changes in the brain can begin more than 20 years before any symptoms become noticeable. This means that midlife represents a critical window for modifiable risk factors that influence late-life cognitive health,” Bjornevik said. “Conditions like hypertension and diabetes also tend to develop during this period, and addressing them early through diet may help protect the brain before irreversible damage occurs.”

The DASH diet also calls for lowering sodium and boosting potassium, calcium and magnesium, which can help lower blood pressure. For example, the sodium target on the DASH diet is no more than 2,300 mg daily (about one teaspoon). The potassium target is 4,700 mg daily, which you can get from foods like a baked potato (with the skin), bananas and salmon.

How to change your eating habits to support cognitive health

Bjornevik said you don’t need to completely change your eating habits overnight. “Rather than overhauling your entire diet, focus on gradually shifting toward more vegetables, fish and whole grains while reducing processed meats and sugary beverages,” he said. “Small, sustainable changes over time are more realistic and more likely to stick.”

These small changes can be as simple as snacking on a handful of nuts instead of a processed option like pretzels, Soomro says. If you’re following the DASH plan, you should also aim to limit alcohol (because it raises blood pressure), sugary drinks and foods high in saturated fats. And while it’s primarily a style of eating, DASH suggests exercising for at least 30 minutes most days of the week, too.

Keeping a specific health goal in mind, such as supporting your brain health or lowering your blood pressure, can help you stay motivated to stick with these changes. “Tailoring your food choices to that goal makes the transition easier and more meaningful,” Soomro said.

However you choose to make small adjustments, know you’re doing your future self a favor. “What we put on our plates in our 40s and 50s can meaningfully influence our cognitive health decades later,” Weber said. “These findings are encouraging; however, more research is needed to clarify and understand how and when dietary interventions are most effective.”

New research links dietary nutrient intake with cognitive health in older adults

 Ask your doctor to give you EXACT SPECIFICS of the foods and supplements. If s/he can't, YOU DON'T HAVE A FUNCTIONING STROKE DOCTOR!

New research links dietary nutrient intake with cognitive health in older adults

Recent research has found a connection between higher intake of certain dietary nutrients and a lower risk of cognitive impairment in older adults. This large-scale study, involving thousands of participants, suggests that what we eat might play a crucial role in maintaining our cognitive health as we age. The findings have been published in the journal. The motivation behind the study stemmed from a growing concern about dementia and cognitive decline, particularly as the global population ages. Dementia, including its most common form, Alzheimer’s disease, poses significant challenges not only to those affected but also to healthcare systems and societies at large. Recognizing that approximately one-third of Alzheimer’s disease cases may be linked to modifiable risk factors, the researchers focused on diet as a crucial, alterable aspect.Tiarnán Keenan, the study’s lead author and Stadtman Tenure-Track Investigator at the National Eye Institute, explained: “In Western medicine, we are starting to rediscover the enormous impact that diet can have on health: ‘In food, excellent medicine can be found; in food, bad medicine can be found’ (Hippocrates, De Alimento). Indeed, nutrition is a critical part of public health: ‘La destinée des nations dépend de la manière dont elles se nourrissent’ (Brillat-Savarin, Physiologie du Goût). This may be particularly true for chronic diseases of aging, such as dementia and age-related macular degeneration.” “We had previously demonstrated very strong links between a healthy diet and decreased risk of age-related macular degeneration. The natural next step was to examine the same question for cognitive impairment and dementia, since we had two excellent datasets with the unusual combination of comprehensive cognitive function testing and detailed dietary information in a large population of study participants followed for at least five years.” The study analyzed data from two significant research projects conducted in the United States (known as the Age-Related Eye Disease Studies). The first project enrolled 4,757 participants aged between 55 and 80 years, while the second involved 4,203 individuals aged 50 to 85 years. These participants were initially part of research focusing on eye health but also underwent detailed cognitive function testing. Researchers looked closely at the participants’ diets, using comprehensive questionnaires to assess the intake of various nutrients. They then explored how these dietary patterns related to the participants’ cognitive abilities. New Smartwatch that can test blood sugar painlessly in seconds

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The researchers found that certain nutrients were linked to a lower risk of cognitive impairment. These included several vitamins, minerals, and specific types of fats found in fish (DHA and EPA). On the flip side, some dietary components seemed to increase the risk. Notably, diets high in saturated fats and foods that cause high blood sugar levels (high glycemic index/load) were associated with a greater risk of cognitive decline.

“The main message is that a diet of foods rich in particular nutrients is very strongly linked to decreased risk of cognitive impairment and therefore likely dementia,” Keenan told PsyPost. “The nutrients with these protective associations include vitamins (e.g., A, B, C, and E), minerals (e.g., copper, magnesium, selenium, and zinc), carotenoids (e.g., lutein, zeaxanthin, beta-carotene, and lycopene), lipids (e.g., omega-3 fatty acids), and fiber.”

“By contrast, a diet of foods with high levels of particular fats (e.g., monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids) and diets with high glycemic index are strongly associated with increased risk of cognitive impairment.”

“Overall, this supports the idea that a Mediterranean-like diet pattern is strongly associated with decreased risk of cognitive impairment and dementia,” Keenan said. “Important aspects of the Mediterranean diet pattern include frequent consumption of plant-based foods and infrequent consumption of saturated/monounsaturated fats (e.g., red meat) or foods with high glycemic index (e.g., refined sugars). These nutrients may maximize cognitive reserve against impairment and dementia and could be suitable candidates for randomized trials.”

While certain dietary choices seemed to influence the risk of cognitive impairment at one point in time, they did not significantly alter the rate of cognitive decline over time. But this lack of a longitudinal relationship might be a result of methodological limitations.

“Despite the significant results for risk of cognitive impairment in many cases, we did not observe slower levels of decline in cognitive function for any of these nutrients,” Keenan explained. “The distinction between significant results for cross-sectional but not longitudinal differences may seem surprising. However, this is likely related either to insufficient power to detect longitudinal differences or to a genuine distinction.”

While the study offers valuable insights, it’s important to note that the findings are based on observational data, meaning they can show associations but not cause-and-effect relationships.

“The caveats to this study include the possibility of residual confounding, i.e., that the associations observed might be related partially to factors other than dietary intake of each nutrient itself,” Keenan said. “However, we took all steps possible to minimize confounding (e.g., by adjusting for total calorie intake, body mass index, smoking status, and other factors). Similarly, since these are observational data, it is not possible to know definitely that nutrient intake is causally linked to altered risk of cognitive impairment. Ultimately, the highest level of evidence would come from a randomized controlled trial.”

Nevertheless, the study offers an important stepping stone in our understanding of diet’s role in cognitive health. It highlights the potential of certain nutrients in maintaining cognitive function and underscores the need for further research in this vital area of public health.

The study, “Dietary nutrient intake and cognitive function in the Age-Related Eye Disease Studies 1 and 2“, was authored by Tiarnan D. L. Keenan, Elvira Agrón, Emily Y. Chew, and the AREDS and AREDS2 Research Groups.

MIND Diet Shows Small Impact on Preserving Cognition

Well, that would be obvious. The MIND diet has no objective protocol. So you have no clue if you are following it.

MIND Diet Shows Small Impact on Preserving Cognition

The Mediterranean-Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, known as the MIND diet, shows only a small impact on brain health.

“The benefits within [the current study] were not as impressive as we have seen with the MIND diet observational studies in the past, but

click or scroll down to continue reading the article

diet has no objective

Guillermo Garcia-Manero, MD

there were improvements in cognition in the short-term, consistent with the longer-term observational data,” said Lisa Barnes, PhD, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois.

Results from the study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, showed that over 3 years, there was no significant statistical difference in change in cognition for participants in the MIND diet group compared with the usual diet control group. However, there was a significant improvement during the first 2 years of the study.

“What we saw was improvement in cognition in both groups, but the MIND diet intervention group had a slightly better improvement in cognition, although not significantly better,” noted Dr. Barnes. “Both groups lost approximately 5 kg over 3 years, suggesting that it could have been weight loss that benefited cognition in this trial.”

This is the first randomised clinical trial designed to test the effects of a diet thought to be protective for brain health.

The MIND diet has 14 dietary components, including 9 “brain-healthy food groups” -- such as chicken and fish, green leafy vegetables and berries, and nuts -- and 5 unhealthy groups: red meat, butter and stick margarine, full fat cheese, pastries and sweets, and fried foods.

“There is established research that shows that a person’s diet affects health,” said Dr. Barnes. “The participants in this study had to have suboptimal diets as determined by a score of ≤8 on a diet screening instrument before the study began. It is reasonable to think that either they were going to maintain their cognition or decrease the rate of cognitive decline in the future.”

For the current study, Dr. Barnes and colleagues analysed 604 participants who were overweight, had a suboptimal diet, and a family history of Alzheimer’s disease. The trial compared 2 different diet interventions, both of which included dietary counseling with mild calorie restriction of 250 calories per day for weight loss.

Participants in both groups had individualised diet guidelines developed by dietitians, and they received regular phone and in-person consultations, as well as occasional group sessions throughout the study. Participants were seen 5 times over the course of the study to evaluate their mental abilities, blood pressure, diet, physical activity, health conditions, and medication use.

“Both groups of participants got a lot of support and accountability by trained registered dietitians,” said Jennifer Ventrelle, Rush University Medical Center.

Results showed that over 3 years, improvements in global cognition scores were observed in both groups, with increases of 0.205 standardised units in the MIND diet group and 0.170 standardised units in the control diet group. Changes in white-matter hyperintensities, hippocampal volumes, and total gray- and white-matter volumes on magnetic resonance imaging were similar in the 2 groups.

“The good news is that this helped all participants improve on average, but [it also] unfortunately hindered the ability to detect significant differences between the 2 groups,” she added. “Current and future research plans to look at people coached to follow the diet in this format compared [with] individuals following a usual diet in a format closer to usual care such as brief clinical encounters or a self-guided program with less support.”

“These individuals were healthy at the start of the trial and had no cognitive impairment, and their cognition got slightly better over time,” concluded Dr. Barnes. “Why there was no difference between the 2 diet groups at the end of the trial could be a result of many factors. Moving forward, we will look at specific food groups and their associations with biomarkers that were measured in the blood to see if certain nutrients and food groups are more important than others since the 2 groups were pretty healthy from a dietary perspective at the start.”

Reference: https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2302368   

SOURCE: Rush University Medical Center

The Impact of Sustained Ownership of a Pet on Cognitive Health: A Population-Based Study

 I'm certainly not getting one, my cognitive health will stay high with all the social connections and travel I have by not having to worry about a pet when I'm gone.

The Impact of Sustained Ownership of a Pet on Cognitive Health: A Population-Based Study

Show all authors

Jennifer W. Applebaum, MS, Monica M. Shieu, PhD, Shelby E. McDonald, PhD, ...

First Published August 25, 2022 Research Article 

https://doi.org/10.1177/08982643221122641

Article information

Abstract

Objectives: 

To examine associations between sustained ownership of a pet and cognitive outcomes among a national sample of U.S. adults.  

Methods: 

Weighted linear mixed models were estimated using the Health and Retirement Study (2010–2016, n = 1369) to compare repeated measures of cognitive function between respondents who endorsed owning a pet in a sustained manner (>5 years), versus those who owned a pet ≤5 years, and non-pet owners.  

Results: 

Respondents aged 65+ who owned a pet >5 years demonstrated higher composite cognitive scores, compared to non-pet owners (β = .76, p = .03). Sustained pet ownership was associated with higher immediate (β = .3, p = .02) and delayed (β = .4, p = .007) word recall scores. There were no significant differences in cognitive scores between pet owners and non-owners aged < 65. 

Discussion: 

Sustained ownership of a pet could mitigate cognitive disparities in older adults. Further studies are needed to examine potential causal pathways, including physical activity and stress buffering, versus selection effects.

Keywords

pets, cognitive health, cognitive function, pet ownership, companion animals

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A nutty solution for improving brain health

Well, at least they have an amount, but I bet your doctor won't even know about this and create a prescription for you on it. Don't do this without your doctors prescription, way too dangerous. 

A nutty solution for improving brain health

Newswise | March 19, 2019

Long-term, high nut consumption could be the key to better cognitive health in older people according to new research from the University of South Australia. In a study of 4,822 Chinese adults aged 55+ years, researchers found that eating more than 10 grams of nuts a day was positively associated with better mental functioning including improved thinking, reasoning, and memory.

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Lead researcher, UniSA’s Dr. Ming Li, says the study is the first to report an association between cognition and nut intake in older Chinese adults, providing important insights into increasing mental health issues (including dementia) faced by an aging population.
“Population aging is one of the most substantial challenges of the twenty-first century. Not only are people living longer, but as they age, they require additional health support which is placing unprecedented pressure on aged-care and health services,” Dr. Li says. “In China, this is a massive issue, as the population is aging far more rapidly than almost any other country in the world. Improved and preventative health care—including dietary modifications—can help address the challenges that an aging population presents. By eating more than 10 grams (or two teaspoons) of nuts per day older people could improve their cognitive function by up to 60%—compared to those not eating nuts—effectively warding off what would normally be experienced as a natural 2-year cognition decline.”

• See Also: Effect of a walnut diet on office and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure in elderly individuals: Findings from the WAHA randomized trial

China has one of the fastest growing aging populations. In 2029, China's population is projected to peak at 1.44 billion, with the ratio of young to old dramatically imbalanced by the rising ranks of the elderly. By 2050, 330 million Chinese will be over age 65 and 90.4 million will be over age 80, representing the world’s largest population of this most elderly age group. More broadly, the World Health Organization says that by 2020, the number of people aged 60 years and older will outnumber children younger than 5 years old.
The UniSA study analyzed nine waves of China Health Nutrition Survey data collected over 22 years, finding that 17% of participants were regular consumers of nuts (mostly peanuts). Dr. Li says peanuts have specific anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects which can alleviate and reduce cognitive decline. “Nuts are known to be high in healthy fats, protein, and fiber with nutritional properties that can lower cholesterol and improve cognitive health,” Dr. Li says. “While there is no cure for age-related cognition decline and neurogenerative disease, variations in what people eat are delivering improvements for older people.”
The World Health Organization estimates that globally, the number of people living with dementia is at 47 million. By 2030, this is projected to rise to 75 million and by 2050, global dementia cases are estimated to almost triple. China has the largest population of people with dementia.
“As people age, they naturally experience changes to conceptual reasoning, memory, and processing speed. This is all part of the normal aging process,” Dr. Li says, “But age is also the strongest known risk factor for cognitive disease. If we can find ways to help older people retain their cognitive health and independence for longer—even by modifying their diet—then this absolutely worth the effort.”

• See Also: Nut consumption in relation to cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality among patients with diabetes mellitus

To read more, click here.

For white middle class, moderate drinking is linked to cognitive health in old age

But we just had this only 3 days ago;

Alcohol's Role as a Stroke Risk Factor

What the hell should we be doing?

 For white middle class, moderate drinking is linked to cognitive health in old age

UC San Diego Health System News

Older adults who consume alcohol moderately on a regular basis are more likely to live to the age of 85 without dementia or other cognitive impairments than non–drinkers, according to a University of California San Diego School of Medicine–led study.

The findings were published in the August issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Previous studies have found a correlation between moderate alcohol intake and longevity. “This study is unique because we considered men and women’s cognitive health at late age and found that alcohol consumption is not only associated with reduced mortality, but with greater chances of remaining cognitively healthy into older age,” said senior author Linda McEvoy, PhD, an associate professor at UC San Diego School of Medicine.

In particular, the researchers found that among men and women 85 and older, individuals who consumed “moderate to heavy” amounts of alcohol five to seven days a week were twice as likely to be cognitively healthy than non–drinkers. Cognitive health was assessed every four years over the course of the 29–year study, using a standard dementia screening test known as the Mini Mental State Examination.

Drinking was categorized as moderate, heavy or excessive using gender and age–specific guidelines established by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. By its definition, moderate drinking involves consuming up to one alcoholic beverage a day for adult women of any age and men aged 65 and older; and up to two drinks a day for adult men under age 65. Heavy drinking is defined as up to three alcoholic beverages per day for women of any adult age and men 65 and older; and four drinks a day for adult men under 65. Drinking more than these amounts is categorized as excessive.

"It is important to point out that there were very few individuals in our study who drank to excess, so our study does not show how excessive or binge–type drinking may affect longevity and cognitive health in aging,” McEvoy said. Long–term excessive alcohol intake is known to cause alcohol–related dementia.

The researchers said the study does not suggest drinking is responsible for increased longevity and cognitive health. Alcohol consumption, particularly of wine, is associated with higher incomes and education levels, which in turn are associated with lower rates of smoking, lower rates of mental illness and better access to health care.

The UC San Diego School of Medicine research team adjusted the statistical analyses to remove confounding variables, such as smoking or obesity, but noted the study is based only on statistical relationships between different demographic factors, behaviors and health outcomes. There remain on–going debates about whether and how alcohol impacts lifespan or potentially protects against cognitive impairments with age.

One of the study’s advantages, however, is that the data derive from a relatively homogenous population in a geographically well–defined area. All of the 1,344 older adults (728 women; 616 men) who participated in the study are from Rancho Bernardo, a white–collar, middle–to–upper–middle–class suburb in San Diego County. More than 99 percent of the study participants, tracked from 1984 to 2013, are Caucasian with at least some college education. “This study shows that moderate drinking may be part of a healthy lifestyle to maintain cognitive fitness in aging,” said lead author Erin Richard, a graduate student in the Joint San Diego State University/UC San Diego Doctoral Program in Public Health. “However, it is not a recommendation for everyone to drink. Some people have health problems that are made worse by alcohol, and others cannot limit their drinking to only a glass or two per day. For these people, drinking can have negative consequences.”