People who ate closest to the MIND diet showed brains that looked about 2.5 years younger on MRI scans over roughly a decade, according to a large study of more than 1,600 middle-aged and older Americans. Berries and poultry stood out as helpers, while sweets and fried fast food tracked with faster tissue loss.
The research, from the long-running Framingham Heart Study, is getting a fresh wave of attention this fall. But before you overhaul your grocery list, it’s worth knowing what this study can and can’t tell you. Here’s the clear-eyed breakdown.
Quick note: this article is for general information only and is not medical advice. Talk to your doctor before making major changes to your diet, especially if you have a health condition.
What the New MIND Diet Study Found
The study, titled “Adherence to the MIND diet and longitudinal brain structural changes over a decade,” was published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry. It first appeared online in March 2026 and later ran in the journal’s print edition (volume 97, issue 6). The research team included scientists from Zhejiang University School of Medicine in China and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, with lead author Hui Chen and senior author Changzheng Yuan.
According to the BMJ Group press release, the researchers followed 1,647 adults from the Framingham Heart Study Offspring cohort. Participants averaged about 60 years old at the start, and roughly 54% were women.
Here’s how it worked:
- Diet: Everyone filled out at least one food frequency questionnaire between 1991 and 2001.
- Brain scans: Each person had at least two MRI scans between 1999 and 2019, with no signs of stroke or dementia at the first scan.
- Scoring: Diets were rated on a 15-point MIND scale. The average score was just under 7.
- Follow-up: About 12 years on average.
The headline numbers
Everyone’s brain changed with age, as expected, regardless of MIND diet score. Total brain, grey matter and hippocampal volumes shrank, while the fluid-filled spaces called ventricles grew.
But the pace differed. Each 3-point increase in MIND diet score was linked to slower grey matter loss of 0.279 cubic centimeters per year. The researchers say that works out to about 20% less age-related decline, or the equivalent of 2.5 years of delayed brain aging.
Grey matter matters because it’s heavily involved in memory, learning, decision making and processing information.
The same 3-point bump was also tied to slower ventricle enlargement, equal to about 8% less tissue loss and roughly 1 year of delayed brain aging.
Which Foods Stood Out (And a Couple of Surprises)
Not every MIND diet food group pulled equal weight. The researchers singled out a few clear standouts.
- Berries: Linked to slower ventricle enlargement.
- Poultry: Linked to slower ventricle enlargement and slower grey matter decline.
- Sweets: Linked to faster ventricle enlargement and more shrinkage of the hippocampus, a key memory hub.
- Fried fast food: Linked to greater hippocampal volume decline.
The authors offered a possible explanation. “MIND-recommended foods rich in antioxidants, such as berries, and high-quality protein sources like poultry may reduce oxidative stress and mitigate neuronal damage,” they wrote, as quoted in the press release. Fried fast foods, they added, may contribute to inflammation and vascular damage.
The plot twists: whole grains and cheese
Here’s where it gets interesting. Higher whole grain intake was actually associated with unfavorable changes, including faster grey matter and hippocampal loss. Meanwhile, more cheese, which the plan tells you to limit, was tied to slower declines and fewer white matter “bright spots” on scans.
The researchers called these results unexpected. They don’t mean you should swap oatmeal for a cheese plate. Single food findings in observational data can be noisy, and they’re a reason to read the overall results with some humility.
What Is the MIND Diet, Exactly?
The MIND diet name stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. It blends two well-studied eating patterns: the Mediterranean diet and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), which was designed to lower blood pressure.
The late Martha Clare Morris, a nutritional epidemiologist at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, developed the plan with colleagues at Rush and Harvard in 2015. In two studies published that year, her team reported that the eating pattern was associated with slower cognitive decline and lower Alzheimer’s risk, even when people didn’t follow it perfectly, according to Rush.
The 10 brain-healthy food groups
Here’s the classic MIND diet list, with the serving targets AARP lists:
- Green leafy vegetables (kale, spinach, salad greens): at least 6 servings a week
- Other vegetables: at least 1 serving a day
- Berries: at least 2 servings a week
- Nuts: about 5 servings a week
- Beans: about 4 servings a week
- Whole grains: about 3 servings a day
- Fish: about 1 serving a week
- Poultry: about 2 servings a week
- Olive oil: AARP suggests about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil a day, used as your main oil
- Wine: in moderation (more on that below)
The 5 groups to limit
- Red meat
- Butter and stick margarine
- Cheese
- Pastries and sweets
- Fried or fast food
A note on wine: many doctors no longer advise anyone to start drinking for health reasons. If you don’t drink, there’s no need to begin. If you do, ask your doctor what’s sensible for you.
The Big Caveat: Association Is Not Causation
This is the part that headlines tend to skip. The Framingham analysis is an observational study. It shows that people with higher MIND diet scores also tended to have slower brain shrinkage. It does not prove the diet caused the difference.
The researchers flagged several limits themselves:
- Healthier people, healthier brains? The top MIND scorers were more likely to be college educated and less likely to smoke, have obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease. Researchers adjust for these factors, but can’t erase them completely.
- Memory-based diet data. Food questionnaires depend on people remembering what they ate, which can introduce recall bias.
- Diet measured early. Eating habits were captured in the 1990s and may have changed over time.
- Limited diversity. Participants were mostly White, so results may not apply equally to everyone.
- Scans, not thinking skills. The study measured brain structure. It did not show that people’s memory or thinking was better as a result.
Interestingly, the links were stronger in older participants, in people who were more physically active and in those who weren’t overweight. The researchers suggest that combining a brain-healthy diet with other healthy habits may matter most.
What the MIND Diet Trial Showed (For Balance)
The strongest test of any diet is a randomized trial, and the MIND diet has had one. In 2023, a three-year trial led by Rush researcher Lisa Barnes was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
It enrolled 604 older adults who were overweight, had suboptimal diets and a family history of Alzheimer’s disease. Half were coached on the MIND diet, and half followed their usual diet with the same calorie target. Both groups were coached to cut about 250 calories a day.
The result? No statistically significant MIND diet advantage, meaning no significant difference in cognitive change between the groups after three years. Both groups improved, and both lost about 5 kilograms.
“Both groups lost approximately 5 kilograms over three years, suggesting that it could have been weight loss that benefited cognition in this trial,” Barnes said in a Rush news release.
The takeaway: the MIND diet looks promising over the long haul in observational data, but a short trial couldn’t separate its effects from the benefits of eating better and losing weight in general. That’s why the new 12-year brain scan findings are interesting, and also why they aren’t the final word.
Easy Ways to Try the MIND Diet This Week
You don’t need a perfect MIND diet score. In the Framingham study, the effect was measured per 3-point increase, so small, steady upgrades are the realistic goal. Here are swaps that move the needle:
- Add a daily salad or a handful of greens. Toss spinach into eggs, soups or smoothies.
- Keep berries in the freezer. Frozen blueberries are cheap, last for months and work in oatmeal or yogurt.
- Swap one red meat dinner for chicken or fish. Grilled chicken tacos or a salmon sheet-pan dinner are easy wins.
- Snack on nuts instead of pastries. A small handful of almonds or walnuts beats a muffin.
- Cook with olive oil instead of butter.
- Make fried fast food an occasional thing. If the drive-thru is a habit, try cutting it from three times a week to once.
- Add beans a few times a week. Chili, lentil soup or chickpeas on a salad all count.
The MIND diet is only one piece of brain health. Sleep and mental engagement matter too. If you’re building a brain-friendly routine, check out our coverage of REM sleep and disease risk, why reading for fun may boost your brain, and what a major study found about fish oil and brain health.
The Bottom Line on the MIND Diet and Brain Aging
A 12-year study of 1,647 adults found that closer adherence to the MIND diet was linked to slower grey matter loss, equal to about 2.5 years of delayed brain aging for every 3-point increase in diet score. Within the MIND diet, berries and poultry looked helpful, while sweets and fried fast food looked harmful.
It’s an association, not proof, and a 2023 randomized trial didn’t find a clear cognitive edge over a general healthy, calorie-reduced diet. Still, the MIND diet is built from foods that are good for your heart and overall health anyway, so the downside of trying it is small.
Your move: Pick two MIND diet swaps from the list above and try them for the next two weeks. And if you have diabetes, kidney disease, food allergies or take medications like blood thinners, talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before making big changes.
