New Research Suggests Mediterranean Diet Could Help To Prevent Brain Shrinkage

The Mediterranean diet can vary in many ways, but it mainly consists of food items that are going to be found in the Mediterranean-style of cooking. With this sort of cooking style, you are going to find a lot of things like olive oil, black olives and other veggies, feta, nuts, fruits, fish, red wine, and so on.

Past research suggests that following this diet can help with reducing the risk of heat disease, it's associated with lower levels of “bad” cholesterol, reduced incidence of cancer, as well as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease,

and now it looks like it might even help to prevent brain shrinkage in old age.

A new study, which was published in the journal Neurology, found that those who closely followed a Mediterranean diet eventually retained more brain volume over time. The information was gathered from 401 participants from Scotland, who were first asked about their dietary information, and then several years later their had their brains scanned and measured.

Our brain is naturally going to shrink as we get older and it's possible that following this diet might be able to slow down that process.

The researchers cannot definitively make the claim that this diet will help in preventing dementia, but it does look like there is a lot of evidence to suggest that this diet can help to contribute to better overall health. The gut, which is referred to as the 2nd brain, and what we put into it can greatly effect our bodies and minds, and it's important to take the time to consider what we are putting into our bodies and what we are investing in for later on down the road.

pics:
pixabay
sources:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/mediterranean-diet/art-20047801
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/01/04/mediterranean-diet-could-prevent-brain-shrinking-old-age-study/
http://www.news18.com/news/india/mediterranean-diet-for-healthy-brain-and-good-memory-1332689.html