In 1,647 Framingham adults, a higher MIND diet score tracked slower grey-matter loss, about 2.5 years over 12 years

What the research found

Study (observational cohort). Changzheng Yuan and colleagues report in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry (online March 2026; June 2026 issue; ScienceDaily 1 October 2026). They followed 1,647 middle-aged and older adults in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring cohort (average age about 60 at the start) for a median of 12.3 years, with repeated food questionnaires and MRI. Each 3-point higher MIND score lined up with 0.279 cm³ per year slower loss of total grey matter (about 20% less of the age-related change, which the authors equate to about 2.5 years). The same 3-point difference lined up with slower ventricular enlargement of 0.071 cm³ per year (about 8%, about 1 year). ScienceDaily notes berries and poultry tracked with healthier structural change, and sweets and fried fast food with more tissue loss. A Harvard Health brief described the cohort as about 54% female and average age 61. The design cannot prove the eating pattern caused the MRI difference, and the paper does not show that the structural change improved thinking scores. Educational notes. This is not a meal plan.

Evidence level: Human study. A study in people, but an association isn't proof of cause.

Read the original at BMJ Group / Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry