Scientists from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases have discovered in a study that a regular Mediterranean-like diet may protect against protein deposits in the brain and brain atrophy in older adults.
The Mediterranean diet involves a relatively higher intake of vegetables, legumes, fruit, cereals, fish and monounsaturated fatty acids, such as olive oil.
The study assessed 512 subjects with an average age of around seventy years, 343 of whom were identified as having a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.
There was found to be a significant positive correlation between a closer adherence to a Mediterranean-like diet and a higher volume of the hippocampus, which is considered as the control centre of memory in the brain. The hippocampus shrinks early and severely in Alzheimer's disease, explained the lead author of the study.
Alzheimer's disease is caused by protein deposits in the brain and the rapid loss of brain matter. The researchers said that it was possible that the Mediterranean diet protected the brain from protein deposits and brain atrophy that could cause memory loss and dementia.