Meal Plans, Benefits and Tips for Brain Health| U.S. News

Key Takeaways of the MIND Diet
Do: Eat vegetables (especially green leafy vegetables), nuts, berries, beans, whole grains, fish, lean poultry and olive oil.
Don’t: Overeat red meat, butter, cheese, pastries, sweets and fried or fast food.
Benefits: Reduces the risk of dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease) and promotes brain health, heart health and healthy aging.
Risks: The diet doesn’t include meal plans, so people need to create their own recipes and meal plans based on the recommended foods.

What Is the MIND Diet?

The plant-forward MIND diet, which stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, combines two proven diets – the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet – to promote brain health and reduce the risk of cognitive decline.

The MIND diet was originally developed by the late Martha Clare Morris, a nutritional epidemiologist at Rush University Medical Center, through a study funded by the National Institute on Aging that was first published in 2015. (The study followed more than 1,000 older adults for up to 10 years from the Rush Memory and Aging Project.) The observational study found that people whose diets very closely matched the MIND diet had about 53% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Follow-up studies in middle-aged and older adults also connect the MIND diet to other positive cognitive effects.

Is It Easy to Follow?

The MIND diet is meant to be an adaptable, non-rigid way of eating.

“The MIND diet is actually a ‘non-diet’ approach,” says Jennifer Ventrelle, assistant professor of family and preventive medicine and clinical nutrition at Rush University Medical Center and co-founder of the official MIND Diet. “Rather than a strict set of rules about what is or is not ‘on the diet,’ the goal is to form overall healthy eating habits within a set of guidelines. The MIND diet recommendations are meant to be specific enough to stay true to its research-based foundation, but also general enough to allow followers to integrate some new habits into an existing lifestyle.”

In fact, she adds, the motto could be: “neverMIND the diet.”

How Does the MIND Diet Work?

By incorporating healthy foods that are known to boost brain health (such as green leafy vegetables, nuts, berries and whole grains) and limiting unhealthy foods (such as red meats, butter, sweets and fried or fast foods), the MIND diet has been shown to promote better cognitive function and reduce the risk of dementia.

The theory is that plant-based foods that are part of the MIND diet all have various essential nutrients and bioactivity. These compounds maintain brain function, reduce plaques and tangles associated with Alzheimer’s disease and lower oxidative stress and inflammation in the brain – two of the major underlying factors for cognitive decline.

“There is more recent evidence suggesting that the MIND diet helps protect brain health by slowing cognitive decline across diverse populations. Findings from the U.S. POINTER study indicate that incorporating the MIND diet into a multidomain lifestyle intervention — combining diet, exercise, cognitive training, social engagement and health monitoring — improved cognition in older adults,” says Puja Agarwal, a nutritional epidemiologist at Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center and an assistant professor of internal medicine and clinical nutrition at Rush University Medical Center, who led a 2024 and 2025 study on the MIND diet.

“Ongoing research is exploring the mechanisms behind these benefits, with potential pathways including preservation of hippocampal neurons and modulation of proteins involved in neuronal signaling, angiogenesis, and inflammatory processes,” adds Agarwal.

There’s no strict meal plan, but aim to follow roughly:

In addition to focusing on brain-healthy foods, you avoid foods from brain-unhealthy food groups. With butter, you’re limited to one teaspoon or less a day. Similarly, limit red meat, fried foods, processed foods and sweets.By incorporating healthy foods that are known to boost brain health (such as green leafy vegetables, nuts, berries and whole grains) and limiting unhealthy foods (such as red meats, butter, sweets and fried or fast foods), the MIND diet has been shown to promote better cognitive function and reduce the risk of dementia.

There’s no strict meal plan, but aim to follow roughly:

Include whole grains and other vegetables dailyEat seven 1-cup servings a week of leafy greensEat at least 5 servings a week of nuts, especially walnutsEat at least 3 ½-cup servings a week of beansEat five ½-cup servings a week of berries, preferably blueberriesEat at least 2 servings a week of lean poultryEat at least one fish meal a weekOlive oil should replace your fats for cooking, etc.
In addition to focusing on brain-healthy foods, you avoid foods from brain-unhealthy food groups. With butter, you’re limited to one teaspoon or less a day. Similarly, limit red meat, fried foods, processed foods and sweets. How to Get Started and Follow the MIND Diet
Stock your fridge and pantry with staples of the MIND diet, including nuts, leafy greens, berries, whole grains, olive oil, fish and lean poultry.Plan and prepare meals ahead of time to make sure they follow the nutritional guidelines of the MIND diet. This also helps to reduce the temptation to eat unhealthy foods.While there are plenty of MIND diet recipes online, you may want to consider cookbooks, such as the “Diet for the MIND: The Latest Science on What to Eat to Prevent Alzheimer’s and Cognitive Decline” written by Morris and “MIND Diet Cookbook for Beginners,” which includes 85 recipes and a seven-day kickstart plan.READ MORE

Can the MIND Diet Help Me Lose Weight?

Yes, it’s possible to lose weight by following the MIND diet, especially if you’re switching to a healthier diet from a standard American diet, which is notoriously high in sugar, sodium and saturated fat. However, the MIND diet is not intended for weight loss, and there’s not enough long-term research to support that it prompts weight loss or weight management.

Health Benefits of the MIND Diet

Reduced risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. As its name suggests, the MIND diet has been shown to help prevent cognitive decline, a finding that has been confirmed by multiple studies, including a 2025 systematic review.
Improved brain health. While the exact mechanism of the diet’s neuroprotective properties is unclear, experts believe that the whole, nutrient-dense foods emphasized by the MIND diet reduce oxidative stress and inflammation – both of which can harm the brain.
Improved heart health. Because the MIND diet is a combination of two heart-healthy dietary approaches, the Mediterranean and DASH diets, it’s no wonder that it can also promote heart health. A 2022 study, which evaluated 2,863 participants over a 10-year follow-up period, found that those who adhered to the MIND diet were less likely to develop cardiovascular disease and related events, such as heart attack and stroke.
Healthy aging and longevity. In a long-term 2020 study of 882 older adults, the risk of dying from all causes was reduced by 37% for participants whose diet matched more closely to MIND compared to those whose diet matched least.

Other Potential Benefits

Other research is also beginning to explore the MIND diet’s potential benefits beyond cognitive health. One review found several dietary patterns, including MIND, may help with migraine symptoms. And a small study in women with diabetes and insomnia linked the diet to improvements in sleep, mood and BDNF levels (a protein that supports brain function). More studies are needed to confirm these results.

Health Risks of the MIND Diet

Because the diet combines the Mediterranean diet and DASH diet, both of which are widely regarded as two of the healthiest diets, there are no potential health risks associated with the MIND diet. Its emphasis on whole, nutrient-dense foods makes it adaptable to a variety of cultural eating patterns, health needs and personal preferences.

Who Should Not Follow the MIND Diet?

The MIND diet is generally safe for everyone, including older adults, children and pregnant women.

If you have any chronic diseases, digestive issues or health conditions, be sure to talk with your health care provider or registered dietitian first to make sure the MIND diet is appropriate for you. This dietary approach is flexible enough that it can be modified around any dietary restrictions or allergies you may have.

What Foods Can I Eat on the MIND Diet?

The MIND diet focuses on 15 dietary components, including 10 brain-healthy foods groups and five unhealthy groups.

Foods to Eat

The 10 brain-healthy food groups of the MIND diet are:

Green leafy vegetables (at least three servings a day)
Other vegetables (at least three servings a day)
Nuts (most days)
Berries (at least twice a week)
Beans (every other day)
Whole grains (at least three servings a day)
Fish (at least once a week)
Lean poultry (at least twice a week)
Olive oil
Wine (optional)

Dietary Restrictions

Diet modifications are possible when following the MIND diet:

Vegan. Because the MIND diet is largely plant-based, it is an excellent fit for vegans. See all vegan diets.
Vegetarian. Well-rounded vegetarians will find that they already regularly consume the foods recommended as staples on the MIND diet. See all vegetarian diets.
Gluten free. Gluten-free adherents will only need to choose gluten-free whole grains – such as millet, brown rice, quinoa, buckwheat and almond flour – to make the MIND diet fit their existing dietary restrictions. See all gluten-free diets.
Halal. The MIND diet limits red meat in favor of poultry and fish. When you choose to eat halal beef, lamb or goat, put it on the menu no more than three times a week. Low-fat halal milk is acceptable in moderate amounts on the MIND diet. See all halal diets.
Kosher. Avoid mixing dairy products and meat, non-finned or non-scaled seafood, pork and animal hindquarters while on the MIND diet.. See all kosher diets.

Shopping List

Kale
Spinach
Sweet potatoes
Green beans
Almonds
Walnuts
Flaxseeds
Hemp seeds
Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and goji berries
Black beans
Chickpeas
Brown rice
Farro
Lentils
Salmon and other fatty fish high in omega-3s
Tuna
Chicken breasts
Ground turkey
Extra-virgin olive oil

What Foods Do I Avoid on the MIND Diet?

The five unhealthy food groups that you want to limit or avoid on the MIND diet are:

Red meats
Butter and stick margarine (less than 1 tablespoon a day)
Cheese (less than a serving a week)
Pastries and sweets (less than a serving a week)
Fried or fast food (less than a serving a week)

MIND Diet Tips and Advice

In May 2017, Chicago resident Qamar Mateen, then 75, joined Rush University’s MIND Trial to Prevent Alzheimer’s out of growing concerns for her family history. After recently losing her father and uncle to Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, she wanted to develop lifestyle habits that would help her improve the health of both her body and mind in order to reduce her risk of developing the same neurological conditions that claimed the lives of her relatives.

“I had to eliminate the word ‘diet’ in my thoughts. It was changing my eating pattern for me,” Mateen says. “When I think of a diet, I think of a beginning and an end. Over three years of the program, I tried to incorporate these ideas or these changes in my mind. What I found worked for me wasn’t so much trying or not trying everything, but making the changes where it was necessary.”

Before starting the MIND trial, Mateen often ate what she wanted when she wanted without giving it any thought, but she became more disciplined and thoughtful in her eating approach in order to incorporate brain-healthy food groups after joining the study.

“Instead of waking up and eating what was available, I knew before I went to bed the night before what I was going to have when I got up,” Mateen says.

She began planning and tracking her meals to make sure that she was following the MIND diet’s guidelines. Eventually, she became proficient in swapping unhealthy ingredients with healthy, nutrient-dense alternatives, such as using olive oil instead of butter and eating nuts rather than chips, and found creative ways to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into her daily routine.

“Instead of waking up and eating what was available, I knew before I went to bed the night before what I was going to have when I got up,” Mateen says.

Indeed, the MIND diet has helped Mateen lower her weight, blood pressure and need for diabetes medications – all of which are important for keeping the heart healthy. But Mateen finds the diet to be a success for keeping her brain healthy as well.

“(My doctors) seem to be in agreement that I’m pretty sharp in my thinking,” she says.

Although the MIND trial concluded in July 2020, Mateen doesn’t consider it the end of her journey. It’s an ongoing process for her that she maintains to this day in order to continue reaping the neuroprotective and heart-healthy benefits of the MIND diet.

“The diet is something that is a gift that continues to keep giving,” she says. “It was one of the best things I could have done for myself.”

Frequently Asked Questions About the MIND Diet

What is the MIND diet?

The MIND diet combines key features in the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets with a focus on foods linked to supporting brain health such as berries, and leafy green vegetables.

How does the MIND diet help the brain?

It emphasizes foods that contain nutrients and beneficial compounds that can reduce oxidative stress and inflammation in the brain, both of which are linked to cognitive decline.

Does the MIND diet prevent Alzheimer’s or dementia?

No diet can guarantee the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases. However, following the MIND diet has been associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s and can help slow cognitive decline.

Who should consider following the MIND diet?

The diet can benefit older adults, people with a family history of dementia or anyone wanting to support brain health. Many people can benefit from the foods the MIND diet promotes, as they’re nutritious and support overall wellness.

Are there certain foods not allowed on the MIND diet?

No foods are completely off-limits, but the diet recommends limiting or avoiding red meat, butter, and sweet and fried foods.