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Sticking to the Mediterranean diet, rich in plants and nuts and low in meat, could drastically reduce your risk of dementia, according to a new study from researchers at Yonsei University in South Korea.

Scientific studies have long shown how our eating habits can affect our chances of developing dementia. Backing up those previous findings, the new study digs into this association for four specific types of diet across a large sample size, following up with participants for an average of 13.5 years.

While it’s not enough to prove direct cause and effect between these diets and dementia risk, this study does show a strong association. Further down the line, that might help us understand how different types of dementia get started, and what steps we could take to slow or prevent it.

“Considering the lack of a definitive cure for dementia, dietary interventions targeting specific food components, overall diet quality, and inflammatory potential offer promising approaches for early prevention,” write the researchers in their published paper.

Related: Scientists Say This One Particular Diet May Slow The Decline of The Brain

The researchers looked at 131,209 individuals aged between 40 and 69 in a public health database, scoring their diets against the Mediterranean diet (MEDAS), the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet, the Recommended Food Score (RFS), and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI).

Sticking to any of these four healthy diets was linked to a notable drop in dementia risk – between 21 and 28 percent. RFS adherents showed the best results, followed closely by the MIND diet.

Inversely, participants’ diets were also scored against another metric, the Energy-adjusted Dietary Inflammatory Index (EDII). Higher EDII scores, which indicate pro-inflammatory diets, were linked to a 30 percent increase in dementia risk.

The healthy diets all focus on whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fish, nuts, and poultry. Fried foods, dairy, and meat are discouraged. It’s thought that this helps reduce stress inside the body and thus protect the brain from harm.

“The associations between dietary patterns and dementia were stronger in older adults and women and varied between the obese and non-obese groups, highlighting the differential impact of dietary patterns across subgroups,” write the researchers.

“Our findings underscore the potential of dietary interventions as modifiable factors to reduce the risk of dementia, particularly in vulnerable populations.”

Despite plenty of progress in our understanding of dementia in recent years, we’re still not sure of its precise causes – though we know that diet, genetics, physical exercise, and sleep all play a role.

With so many factors involved, figuring out how conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease develop in some people and not others isn’t easy. However, each of these studies helps put together a full picture, as well as suggesting practical ways in which we might help reduce our own personal risk.

“Our study effectively addresses several limitations of previous studies on diet and dementia,” write the researchers.

“Many earlier studies relied on a single dietary scoring system without comparing multiple dietary patterns, or had relatively short follow-up periods, limiting their ability to assess long-term effects.”

The research has been published in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging.

Sticking to the Mediterranean diet, rich in plants and nuts and low in meat, could drastically reduce your risk of dementia, according to a new study from researchers at Yonsei University in South Korea.

Scientific studies have long shown how our eating habits can affect our chances of developing dementia. Backing up those previous findings, the new study digs into this association for four specific types of diet across a large sample size, following up with participants for an average of 13.5 years.

While it’s not enough to prove direct cause and effect between these diets and dementia risk, this study does show a strong association. Further down the line, that might help us understand how different types of dementia get started, and what steps we could take to slow or prevent it.

“Considering the lack of a definitive cure for dementia, dietary interventions targeting specific food components, overall diet quality, and inflammatory potential offer promising approaches for early prevention,” write the researchers in their published paper.

Related: Scientists Say This One Particular Diet May Slow The Decline of The Brain

The researchers looked at 131,209 individuals aged between 40 and 69 in a public health database, scoring their diets against the Mediterranean diet (MEDAS), the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet, the Recommended Food Score (RFS), and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI).

Sticking to any of these four healthy diets was linked to a notable drop in dementia risk – between 21 and 28 percent. RFS adherents showed the best results, followed closely by the MIND diet.

Inversely, participants’ diets were also scored against another metric, the Energy-adjusted Dietary Inflammatory Index (EDII). Higher EDII scores, which indicate pro-inflammatory diets, were linked to a 30 percent increase in dementia risk.

The healthy diets all focus on whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fish, nuts, and poultry. Fried foods, dairy, and meat are discouraged. It’s thought that this helps reduce stress inside the body and thus protect the brain from harm.

“The associations between dietary patterns and dementia were stronger in older adults and women and varied between the obese and non-obese groups, highlighting the differential impact of dietary patterns across subgroups,” write the researchers.

“Our findings underscore the potential of dietary interventions as modifiable factors to reduce the risk of dementia, particularly in vulnerable populations.”

Despite plenty of progress in our understanding of dementia in recent years, we’re still not sure of its precise causes – though we know that diet, genetics, physical exercise, and sleep all play a role.

With so many factors involved, figuring out how conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease develop in some people and not others isn’t easy. However, each of these studies helps put together a full picture, as well as suggesting practical ways in which we might help reduce our own personal risk.

“Our study effectively addresses several limitations of previous studies on diet and dementia,” write the researchers.

“Many earlier studies relied on a single dietary scoring system without comparing multiple dietary patterns, or had relatively short follow-up periods, limiting their ability to assess long-term effects.”

The research has been published in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging.

“Creatine is very crucial for energy-consuming cells in skeletal muscle throughout the body, but also in the brain and in the heart,” said Chin-Yi Chen, a research scientist at Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC.

Chen is part of a research team working to develop a technique that uses focused ultrasound to deliver creatine directly to the brain. The work, being conducted in the lab of Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Assistant Professor Cheng-Chia “Fred” Wu, will be supported by a $30,000 grant from the Association for Creatine Deficiencies.

Creatine plays a vital role in the brain, where it interacts with phosphoric acid to help create adenosine triphosphate, a molecule essential for energy production in living cells. In addition to its role in energy production, creatine also influences neurotransmitter systems.

For example, creatine influences the brain’s major inhibitory pathways that use the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid, which limits neuronal excitability in the central nervous system. It may play a role in a variety of functions, including seizure control, learning, memory, and brain development.

A growing body of research suggests that creatine may itself function as neurotransmitter, as it is delivered to neurons from glial cells in the brain and can influence signaling processes between other neurons. While creatine deficiency disorders can weaken the skeletal muscle and the heart, they can also severely affect the brain. Many patients see increased muscle mass and body weight with creatine supplements, but they often continue to face neurodevelopmental challenges that can hinder their ability to speak, read, or write.

This is largely caused by the brain’s protective blood-brain barrier. This selective shield blocks harmful substances like toxins and pathogens from entering brain tissue, but it can also prevent beneficial compounds like creatine from reaching the brain when levels are low.

Wu studies therapeutic focused ultrasound, which precisely directs sound waves to areas of the brain to which access has been opened temporarily. The process allows drugs to reach diseased tissue without harming surrounding healthy cells. While Wu is investigating this method as a potential treatment for pediatric brain cancer, he also sees potential in applying it to creatine deficiency.

“Through the partnership between Virginia Tech and Children’s National Hospital, I was able to present our work in focused ultrasound at the Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus,” Wu said. “There, I met Dr. Seth Berger, a medical geneticist, who introduced me to creatine transporter deficiency. Together, we saw the promise that focused ultrasound had to offer.”

The Focused Ultrasound Foundation has recognized Virginia Tech and Children’s National as Centers of Excellence. Wu said the two organizations bring together clinical specialists, trial experts, and research scientists who can design experiments that could inform future clinical trials.

“It was a moment that made me really excited — that I had found a lab where I could move from basic research to something that could help patients,” Chen said. “When Fred asked me, ‘Are you interested in this project?’ I said, ‘Yes, of course.’”

Because creatine deficiencies can impair brain development, the early stages of Chen’s project will concentrate on using focused ultrasound to deliver creatine across the blood-brain barrier. Chen hopes the technique will restore normal brain mass in models of creatine deficiency.

July 9 (UPI) — The number of reported measles cases in the United States has hit 1,288 in the first six months of this year, the most since the disease was declared eliminated in 2000, according data released Wednesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The figure has surpassed the total number of infections in 2019, which was 1,274, the CDC said.

In 1992, there were 2,126 cases, eight years before the virus was officially declared eliminated in the United States in 2000 after vaccine use became prevalent. That means measles was no longer spreading within the country, and new cases were only found when someone contracted measles abroad and returned to the United States.

Cases have been reported in 38 states, with 753 in Texas, where outbreaks were first reported in January. The next highest states are 95 in New Mexico and 87 in Kansas.

There have been 27 separate outbreaks, with 88% of confirmed cases related to them, the CDC said.

Of the cases, 29% are among children under 5, with 36% from those 5-19 years old and 34% of those 20 years and older.

Also, 92% of cases are among those unvaccinated, with 4% getting one measles, mumps and rubella dose, and 4% two.

Thirteen percent of those with measles were hospitalized, and there have been three deaths.

Despite the outbreaks, CDC said in the statement to CBS News the risk of measles infection remains lower than in other countries, including Canada, Britain, France, Spain and Italy.

Canada, which has 12% of the U.S. population, has reported 3,393 confirmed cases, including 2,231 in the province of Ontario.

“Measles risk is higher in U.S. communities with low vaccination rates in areas with active measles outbreaks or with close social and/or geographic linkages to areas with active measles outbreaks,” the statement said, adding, “CDC continues to recommend MMR vaccines as the best way to protect against measles.”

A study published in June found that the vaccination rate decreased from 93.92% in the 2017-2018 school year to 91.26% in 2023-2024.

Herd immunity is considered with a 95% vaccination rate.

The outbreak was originally reported in a rural Mennonite community with a low vaccination rate.

Measles, which is the most contagious infectious disease known to humans, spreads through the air via respiratory droplets produced by coughing or sneezing.

Symptoms include cough, runny nose, inflamed eyes, sore throat, fever and a red, blotchy skin rash. Over-the-counter fever reducers or vitamin A may alleviate symptoms.

Before the measles vaccine, nearly every child contracted measles by the time they were 15.

The CDC estimates that 3 million to 4 million people in the United States were sickened by measles every year before the vaccine. That included 48,000 hospitalizations and 400 to 500 deaths each year.

The measles vaccine was first licensed for public use in 1963, according to the World Health Organization.

The first MMR vaccine was administered in 1971.