The association between the MIND-NL diet, Dutch dietary guidelines, and global cognitive function in an older...

This study examined the association between adherence to the Dutch MIND diet (Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, MIND-NL) and the Dutch dietary guidelines (DHD2015-index) with global cognitive function in older adults at risk of cognitive decline.

A cross-sectional study was conducted using baseline data of the FINGER-NL trial.

A total of 1,135 older adults, aged 60-80 years, at risk for cognitive decline with complete dietary data and complete neuropsychological tests were included in the analyses.

A validated 72-item Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) was used to assess adherence to the dietary patterns. Global cognitive function was assessed by calculating a composite score based on four subtests of a neuropsychological test battery. Multiple linear regression analyses, adjusted for age, sex, education level, socioeconomic status (SES), body mass index (BMI), physical activity level, smoking status, and cardiovascular risk factors, were applied to examine potential associations between MIND-NL diet score and global cognitive function, and between DHD2015-index and global cognitive function. Interaction and subsequent subgroup analyses were conducted based on age, sex, education, SES, and physical activity. Explorative network analyses were applied to identify links between individual dietary intake components and global cognitive function.

The median [IQR] age of the participants was 67 [64-71] years. Overall, neither the MIND-NL diet nor the DHD2015-index was associated with the global cognition composite score (β = 0.014, 95%CI: -0.016, 0.045, p = 0.35 and β = 0.003, 95%CI: -0.000, 0.006, p = 0.07, respectively). The association between MIND-NL diet score and global cognition was moderated by age (p_interaction = 0.06), with adults under 70 years of age showing a positive trend. Although no significant interaction was noted (p_interaction = 0.28), an association was found between DHD2015-index and global cognition in participants aged under 70 years (β = 0.004, 95%CI: 0.000, 0.008, p = 0.048). Dietary intake of fruiting vegetables and vitamin E were positively correlated with global cognitive function.

In this study, adherence to the Dutch dietary guidelines was associated with better global cognitive function among older adults under the age of 70 years at risk of cognitive decline. Future research aims at investigating longitudinal associations and confirming the moderating effect of age.