Mediterranean-style Diet May Reduce Dementia Risk In Individuals With High Genetic Risk

A caller study led by investigators from Mass General Brigham, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and nan Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard suggests that a Mediterranean-style fare whitethorn thief trim dementia risk. The study, published successful Nature Medicine, recovered that group astatine nan highest familial consequence for Alzheimer's illness benefited much from pursuing a Mediterranean-style diet, showing a greater simplification successful dementia consequence compared to those astatine little familial risk.

One logic we wanted to study nan Mediterranean fare is because it is nan only dietary shape that has been causally linked to cognitive benefits successful a randomized trial. We wanted to spot whether this use mightiness beryllium different successful group pinch varying familial backgrounds, and to analyse nan domiciled of humor metabolites, nan mini molecules that bespeak really nan assemblage processes nutrient and carries retired normal functions."

Yuxi Liu, PhD, study first author, investigation chap successful nan Department of Medicine astatine Brigham and Women's Hospital, postdoctoral chap astatine nan Harvard Chan School and Broad

Over nan past fewer decades, researchers person learned much astir nan familial and metabolic ground of Alzheimer's illness and related dementias. These are among nan astir communal causes of cognitive diminution successful older adults. Alzheimer's illness is known to person a beardown familial component, pinch heritability estimated astatine up to 80%.

One cistron successful particular, apolipoprotein E (APOE), has emerged arsenic nan strongest familial consequence facet for sporadic Alzheimer's illness - nan much communal type develops later successful life and is not straight inherited successful a predictable pattern. People who transportation 1 transcript of nan APOE4 version person a 3-to-4-fold higher consequence of processing Alzheimer's. People pinch 2 copies of nan APOE4 version (called APOE4 homozygous) person a 12-fold higher consequence of Alzheimer's than those without.

To research really nan Mediterranean fare whitethorn trim dementia consequence and power humor metabolites linked to cognitive health, nan squad analyzed information from 4,215 women successful nan Nurses' Health Study, pursuing participants from 1989 to 2023 (average property 57 astatine baseline). To validate their findings, nan researchers analyzed akin information from 1,490 men successful nan Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, followed from 1993 to 2023.

Researchers evaluated semipermanent dietary patterns utilizing nutrient wave questionnaires and examined participants' humor samples for a wide scope of metabolites. Genetic information were utilized to measure each participant's inherited consequence for Alzheimer's disease. Participants were past followed complete clip for caller cases of dementia. A subset of 1,037 women underwent regular telephone-based cognitive testing.

They recovered that nan group pursuing a much Mediterranean-style fare had a little consequence of processing dementia and showed slower cognitive decline. The protective effect of nan fare was strongest successful nan high-risk group pinch 2 copies of nan APOE4 cistron variant, suggesting that fare whitethorn thief offset familial risk.

"These findings propose that dietary strategies, specifically nan Mediterranean diet, could thief trim nan consequence of cognitive diminution and stave disconnected dementia by broadly influencing cardinal metabolic pathways," Liu said. "This proposal applies broadly, but it whitethorn beryllium moreover much important for individuals astatine a higher familial risk, specified arsenic those carrying 2 copies of nan APOE4 familial variant."

A study limitation was that nan cohort consisted of well-educated individuals of European ancestry. More investigation is needed successful divers populations.

In addition, though nan study reveals important associations, genetics and metabolomics are not yet portion of astir objective consequence prediction models for Alzheimer's disease. People often don't cognize their APOE genetics. More activity is needed to construe these findings into regular aesculapian practice.

"In early research, we dream to research whether targeting circumstantial metabolites done fare aliases different interventions could supply a much personalized attack to reducing dementia risk," Liu said.