Project Description:

Nearly 50 million people globally have dementia, and this number is expected to triple by 2050. There are no widely available treatments that can change the course of Alzheimer’s Disease, but certain diets may prevent or delay cognitive decline. This study is exploring the relationship between the Mediterranean- DASH intervention for neurogenerative delay (MIND diet) and cognitive performance, using cognitive and biomarker data from participants at the NYU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

Potential Impact:

The goal of this line of work is to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias and improve the quality of life for millions of people at risk through the development of personalized nutrition strategies tailored to individuals' genetic profiles. By integrating dietary assessment with genetic and epigenetic analyses, and cognitive assessment, this pilot study will generate preliminary data to inform the design of future larger-scale precision nutrition projects aiming to slow cognitive decline and prevent dementia.

Next Steps:

We are planning a dietary intervention study which will incorporate precision nutrition approaches to help people to reduce their risk of cognitive decline. We will use dietary assessments, genetics, epigenetics, and cognitive tests to measure the success of the intervention.

The importance/value of RCCN funding for this collaborative research:

The RCCN funding made this collaborative research possible by providing funding to foster the development of a new inter-disciplinary collaboration leveraging Dr. Johnston’s expertise in dietary assessment and Dr. Reynolds’ expertise in genetic and molecular epidemiology of aging. This initial pilot study is essential for generating preliminary data and validating the research approach. The results from this pilot study will be critical to support future precision nutrition grant proposals developing and testing dietary interventions to prevent or delay dementia.