Salad dressing good for the brain, new study shows

Salad dressing good for the brain, new study shows


It may prove to be the ultimate diet decision, depending on whether you care more about keeping your body or your brain fit, but bring on the salad dressing.

A new study shows that simple condiment — along with healthy helpings of nuts, fish, poultry and certain fruits and vegetables — appears to help fend off Alzheimer’s disease.

But keep what you slather on your salads and veggies simple, according to the newest study looking at the link between food and brain health. Italian-style dressings made with olive oil and vinegar are best, says researcher Yian Gu of the Columbia University Medical Center.

Gu and a team of researchers studied the food intake of 2,148 adults aged 65 and up for an average of four years, 253 of whom went on to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Their work not only confirms other studies that show Mediterranean-style diets rich in olive oil, fish, nuts, vegetables and fruits are as good for your brain as they are for your heart, but it looks at a much broader base of 30 food groups. A report of the findings was posted online Monday and will appear in the June print issue of the Archives of Neurology.

“Since there’s no treatment yet for Alzheimer’s disease, it’s very important for us to prevent it, and diet can help,” Gu said in a telephone interview from New York. “This is an important area that needs more study. You can’t pay too much attention to individual food items. You have to look at the whole diet and the impact it can have.”

While this report just confirms a growing body of research pointing to a strong link between diet and brain, a spokesperson for the Alzheimer’s Society of Ontario stressed that it’s best to whip up home-made dressings of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

“Commercial salad dressings can be very high in fat, salt and sugar,” said Alzheimer’s Society spokesperson Roseanne Meandro. “There’s more and more evidence out there that what’s good for your heart is good for your brain.”

This latest study focused on older New York-area residents, many of them Hispanics, says Gu. It found those less at risk of developing Azheimer’s disease tended to eat low-fat diets with lots of omega fatty acids, salad dressing, nuts, fish, tomatoes, poultry, fruits, cruciferous as well as dark and leafy green vegetables. They also had a low intake of high-fat dairy, red and organ meat, and butter.

Researchers also reported that vitamin B12 can be good for the brain if taken in pill form rather than ingested as red meat, dairy products or eggs. Vitamin E appears to be a strong antioxidant that can counteract the effect of some fatty acids that are believed to contribute to dementia, the researchers found.

More on our Brain Health page.