Delaying Parkinson’s Disease through Diet

While it is well known that a healthy, balanced diet can improve overall health, there is mounting research on the exact effects of different diets and foods on specific conditions. Certain foods have long been linked to health benefits, such as milk for strong bones, or fish for cognition, but in recent years the role of food as medicine has come to the forefront in the scientific community.

In particular, the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet has shown great promise in delaying the onset of Parkinson’s disease. The MIND diet is comprised of parts of the Mediterranean diet and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, centered around an increase in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats from foods like fish, while minimizing consumption of meat.

While the MIND diet was developed for its neuroprotective abilities against dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, a recent study examined its impact on suspending the onset of Parkinson’s disease. The study found that when participants closely followed the MIND diet, the onset of Parkinson’s was delayed by 17.4 years in women, and 8.4 years in men. Researchers also discovered that though the MIND diet had more significant results in women, the Mediterranean diet had more significant results in men. These results are notable considering 60% of Parkinson’s patients are men and suggest that the difference between the two diets could point to specific foods as central players in each gender’s brain health.