Brain Food: How the Mediterranean Diet Keeps Your Mind Sharp (and Sweetens Your Blood Sugar Too)
Monday, January 6, 2025.
When it comes to protecting your brain as you age, it seems grandma’s Mediterranean recipes are onto something—and not just for the flavor.
Recent research from the DIRECT PLUS trial, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggests that swapping out processed junk for a Mediterranean diet—particularly one supercharged with green tea and Mankai duckweed—might keep your brain younger and sharper.
This isn't just about eating well; it’s about thinking well, too.
The Aging Brain: Can We Slow the Slide?
Aging gracefully is great—until your brain starts acting older than you feel.
Brain atrophy (the fancy term for losing neurons and brain tissue) often tags along with aging, bringing unwelcome guests like memory loss and cognitive decline.
Add type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, or a steady diet of fried food, and that decline can accelerate faster than your Wi-Fi buffering a Netflix binge.
But what if the way you eat could hit pause—or at least slow down—the process? That’s exactly what researchers aimed to explore by studying the effects of improved glycemic control and nutrient-packed diets on brain health.
Mediterranean Diet Meets Science
The DIRECT PLUS Brain MRI trial recruited 294 participants aged 30 or older with abdominal obesity or dyslipidemia (translation: a bit too much padding around the middle or cholesterol issues). Participants were split into three groups:
The Control Group: Given standard healthy diet guidelines.
The Mediterranean Diet Group: Calorie-restricted meals featuring veggies, fish, poultry, and nuts—plus a hard pass on processed meats.
The Green-Mediterranean Diet Group: Think Mediterranean, but greener, with the addition of polyphenol-packed goodies like green tea (3–4 cups daily) and Mankai duckweed shakes (500 ml daily).
Participants didn’t just eat better—they moved more too. Free gym memberships and nutrition coaching sessions kept everyone accountable.
Brain Scans and Blood Sugar: What They Found
Over 18 months, researchers peered into participants' brains with MRI scans and tracked their hippocampal occupancy scores—a marker of brain age tied to memory and learning. They also measured blood sugar levels, including fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c. The results? A diet makeover worked wonders.
Brain Aging Slowed: Participants on the Mediterranean diets, especially the green version, experienced significantly less brain shrinkage than the control group. In fact, the green-Mediterranean group saw a 50% slower decline in hippocampal volume—think of it as turning back the brain’s clock.
Sweet Success in Blood Sugar: Improved glycemic control was the MVP here. Lower fasting glucose and A1c levels correlated with a younger brain age, independent of weight loss.
Polyphenols to the Rescue: The green tea and Mankai shakes seemed to turbocharge the diet’s effects, possibly by crossing the blood-brain barrier to reduce inflammation and promote brain repair.
Why It Works: Food for Thought (Literally)
Polyphenols—plant compounds with antioxidant properties—appear to be the secret sauce.
Found in green tea and Mankai duckweed, they likely fight off inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain, keeping neurons happy. Bonus: saying goodbye to red meat and hello to more greens may also play a role in brain protection.
Dr. Dafna Pachter, the study’s lead author, summed it up best: "Small, consistent changes to daily habits—like a Mediterranean or green-Mediterranean diet—can slow brain aging in as little as 18 months. The earlier we start, the better."
While the study highlights promising neuroprotective effects, it’s not without limitations.
Most participants were male, and researchers didn’t assess cognitive performance directly.
So while brain scans show less shrinkage, we don’t yet know how this translates to sharper memory or better thinking. And while polyphenols are getting all the glory, reduced red meat consumption might deserve some credit too.
Your Brain on (Green) Mediterranean
Here’s the bottom line: You don’t need a culinary revolution to keep your brain in shape. Start small—swap sugary snacks for a handful of walnuts, replace soda with green tea, and maybe blend up a Mankai smoothie.
Add regular movement and focus on balancing your blood sugar, and you’re already on the path to a brain that defies its years. Who knew better glycemic control could be your brain’s new best friend?
Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.
REFERENCES:
Pachter, D., Kaplan, A., Tsaban, G., Zelicha, H., Yaskolka Meir, A., Rinott, E., ... & Shai, I. (2024). Glycemic control contributes to the neuroprotective effects of Mediterranean and green-Mediterranean diets on brain age: The DIRECT PLUS brain-magnetic resonance imaging randomized controlled trial. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.