DASH lowers dementia risk
Two recent studies reported this week found the DASH diet — rich in fruits, veg and whole grains with limited sodium and saturated fat — reduces dementia risk and improves heart health. The findings were summarized in Washington Post wellness coverage on March 19, 2026, positioning DASH as a top spring nutrition strategy (washingtonpost.com).
A JAMA Neurology cohort analysis published online Feb. 23, 2026 pooled diet and cognition data from the Nurses’ Health Study, NHSII and the Health Professionals Follow‑Up Study, covering 159,347 participants (mean age 44.3 years; 82.6% female). (jamanetwork.com) Participants whose diets most closely matched the DASH pattern had about a 41% lower risk of subjective cognitive decline compared with those with the lowest DASH adherence, according to the study’s reported comparisons. (medicalxpress.com) The JAMA team also reported a small but measurable improvement in objectively assessed global cognition (mean z‑score difference ~0.05, 95% CI 0.02–0.09) and found the diet–cognition link was strongest when DASH adherence occurred during mid‑adulthood (ages 45–54). (hmpgloballearningnetwork.com) The cardiovascular analysis used randomized feeding data from the DASH‑Sodium trial in a secondary analysis published in the American Journal of Preventive Cardiology (June 2025) that included 412 adults (mean age 48±10 years; 57% female; 57% Black). (sciencedirect.com) That analysis estimated pooled‑cohort 10‑year ASCVD risk changes of −9.4% with low versus high sodium, −5.3% for DASH versus a typical American diet, and −14.1% when DASH was combined with low sodium — with the biggest benefits seen in women, Black participants, and those with stage‑2 hypertension at baseline. (sciencedirect.com) Both research teams noted limits: the JAMA Neurology findings are observational and cannot prove causation, and the DASH‑Sodium results come from short feeding periods rather than long‑term event trials, prompting calls for randomized interventions and biomarker work to test whether diet changes directly prevent dementia or cardiovascular events. (abcnews.com)
