June 30, 2026, 6:01 pm | Read time: 4 minutes

Diet with Anti-Inflammatory Benefits

Researchers from Sweden wanted to find out if a healthy diet can still affect the risk of dementia when the first biological signs of Alzheimer’s or other brain damage are present. The result: A diet low in inflammation, or an anti-inflammatory diet, was particularly associated with a lower risk of dementia, even in people whose blood values already indicated Alzheimer’s-type changes or other neurodegenerative processes.¹

One of the study’s lead authors, Anja Mrhar, told FITBOOK: “Biological signs associated with Alzheimer’s disease or neurodegenerative processes indicate an increased risk but do not mean that dementia is inevitable.” She also added: “Our results suggest that the quality of diet might still be important even when early biological changes are already detectable.”

What the Study Examined and How It Was Conducted

For the study, scientists analyzed data from 1,865 people aged 60 and older who did not have dementia at the start. Participants were followed for up to 15 years. Using a detailed dietary questionnaire, researchers recorded eating habits and compared three dietary patterns: a Mediterranean-influenced diet, a generally healthy diet, and a diet with minimal inflammatory effects.

Additionally, blood samples were tested for three biomarkers that can indicate Alzheimer’s-type changes or other brain damage. Researchers then tracked which participants developed dementia—particularly Alzheimer’s dementia—during the study. In their analysis, they also considered factors such as age, gender, education, smoking, physical activity, body weight, and comorbidities.

Further Study Results in Detail

During the up to 15-year follow-up, 240 of the 1,865 participants developed dementia. Overall, it was shown: The higher the dietary quality, the lower the risk of dementia. The strongest correlation was with a diet low in inflammatory effects.

People with elevated blood levels of the Alzheimer’s biomarker “p-tau217” had up to a 29 percent lower risk of dementia with a consistently low-inflammation or anti-inflammatory diet. A similar correlation was also observed with elevated levels of the biomarkers “NFL” and “GFAP,” which indicate damage to nerve cells or changes in support cells in the brain.

The results applied to both dementia overall and specifically to Alzheimer’s dementia. Furthermore, people with elevated biomarker levels and a low-inflammation diet remained dementia-free longer on average and were less likely to develop dementia within the following ten years. Additional analyses confirmed the stability of the results.

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What This Specifically Means

The results suggest that a diet with minimal inflammatory effects could be particularly important for people with an increased biological risk for dementia. This supports the assumption that chronic inflammatory processes play a significant role in the development of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. Foods such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, and whole grains, which are part of such a diet, have already been linked to better brain health in previous studies. However, Mrhar cautions: “Our study does not show that diet can prevent dementia.” Red and processed meats and sugary drinks should be largely avoided.

It also became apparent that not all healthy dietary patterns were equally associated with dementia risk. While the Mediterranean diet and other general recommendations showed benefits mainly for people with lower biomarker levels, a low-inflammation diet was associated with a lower dementia risk even with increased biological risk.

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Study

The strengths of the study include the large number of participants, the long observation period of up to 15 years, and the use of modern blood markers that can detect early Alzheimer’s-type changes and other brain damage. Additionally, researchers compared three different dietary patterns directly for the first time.

However, the study also has weaknesses. The dietary information was based on questionnaires and may therefore be inaccurate. It is also unclear which specific foods or nutrients were responsible for the observed correlations. As it is an observational study, it cannot establish a cause-and-effect relationship between diet and dementia.