The MIND Diet: A Scientific Approach to Enhancing Brain Function and Helping Prevent Alzheimer's and Dementia (MIND Diet Books) Paperback – November 12, 2021

This book explains how food/nutrition affects your brain long-term. Easy read. Very informative and helpful in changing your eating lifestyle.

As our lives get longer, it's important to be sure that we make choices to improve the quality of those longer lives. As someone with three living grandparents who all suffer from a form of dementia, I'm grateful that research like this exists. This book does a great job of combining the scientific with the practical--it doesn't go on too long about science concepts, but it offers enough background to help convince the reader to try some of the tasty-looking recipes inside! I found a lot of similarities with this book and Michael Pollan's work--they both advocate the hearty consumption of lots of plants. There's a more detailed about what to eat when and how both at the beginning (more science oriented) and the end (more practical).In between are tons of detailed recipes. I'm especially enjoying the desserts--I don't like food that's overly sweet, and these desserts curb the sweet tooth while also providing nutrients. I'm also really into the focus on snacks--I honestly feel that snacking is incredibly underrated as a conscientious source of nutrients and not just a mindless stream of endorphins and calories. Overall, I was really impressed with this book.

I like the MIND Diet because the basis of it centers around nourishing the whole body and reducing our carbon footprint. I’ve felt that in past years, my memory has begun to fade. It is described in the book as cognitive decline. It’s a good idea to eat better now to help my overall well being and to help keep me sharp.Separated into four parts, the diet covers the science of the diet, meal prep, recipes, and a summary of tips and tools. What I do like is that alcohol (wine) is included in the diet. It even points out that moderate alcohol intake reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. There is even a section that breaks down wine pairings.I also like the idea of the score guide mentioned in the book to help keep track of food groups and goals (keep in mind that you can have one serving of wine a day). I've also printed out the worksheet to help in meal planning/prep.Of course with any good diet book, it includes recipes. Some of my favorites; Almond-Crusted Baked Salmon, Grilled Apricot-Glazed Salmon (can you tell I like salmon?), Blueberry Peach and Avocado Salsa, Guacamole-Stuffed Tomato Poppers, Lemon Roasted Asparagus and the Bluberry Banana Ice Cream. It’s a smart diet. If you want to know the right steps towards health, mind and body, this is a good diet to use.

This book wasn't what I expected. I think it offers a good jumping-off point for anyone who wants to make changes but isn't fully committed yet. I say this because there are some good suggestions in the book, but others take it only so far. For example, the plan lists foods that the author says are damaging and should be avoided, but allows them several times a week anyway. It's still much better than the typical Standard American Diet, but you need more than this wishy-washy approach to make real changes to your future.The Mind Diet book is based on the MIND diet study, which is based on a questionnaire that was developed by Martha Clare Morris, a nutritional epidemiologist at Rush University Medical Center. It hasn't actually been put to the test. A group of 923 Chicago area seniors filled out questionnaires to determine what types of foods they had eaten for several years. They were not asked to eat a certain way, they just submitted a food diary of sorts. They took those questionnaires and broke them down into groups of people that ate healthier, moderately healthy, and unhealthy. The studies showed that ate healthier had lower risks than those who ate moderately or unhealthily. No surprise there. It's likely that those who ate healthier had done so most of their lives. Also, note that no one has been on the MIND diet once the list was compiled. The so-called study even states very clearly that there is no evidence showing the MIND diet works, that it was purely observational and was not controlled or randomized. The MIND diet, as described in this book, seems to cull recommendations from the MIND study, but leaves out important parts, such as exercise.I appreciate that the author takes the time to emphasize how important antioxidants are and how several studies have shown that those who eat more vegetables have lower risks for Alzheimer's. Therefore, I was very confused when she recommended only one serving of vegetables daily, along with one serving of greens. If you know that people benefit more from more vegetables, why not recommend it?This book is okay for a start, especially for someone that might not be ready to make serious changes and wants to ease into a more brain healthy lifestyle.There is another book that I recommend to my own family and friends. The Alzheimer's Solution: A Breakthrough Program to Prevent and Reverse the Symptoms of Cognitive Decline at Every Age, by Drs Dean and Ayesha Sherzai, is based on science and actual studies that take a proven approach to Alzheimer's prevention or at least postponing it. They are neurologists and directors of the Brain Health and Alzheimer's Prevention Program at Loma Linda University Medical Center. Their book is comprehensive but easy to understand and the program is easy to follow.

Dietician used this book as a reference in a Healthy Body/Healthy Brain class I took sponsored by the Alzheimer's Assn. Yummy recipes!

As my parents get older, I become more and more aware of their health- including their mental health! The possibility of dementia is always with us as we age, and this book helps us eat food that will hopefully lessen the possibility. These recipes are designed to improve memory and mental acuity. The author is registered nutritionist and knows what she is talking about. The "brain food" in this book is not only healthy, but also delicious! These recipes are detailed and easy to follow. There are even relatively healthy desserts! I am a big fan of this cookbook and have been enjoying it very much. My parents have been loving it too. Highly recommended!