Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Jun 28, 2026 1 hour, 5 minutes ago
Medical News: New research links regular nut consumption to better long-term brain health
A large international study has found that people who regularly eat nuts may have a significantly lower risk of developing dementia later in life, adding to growing evidence that simple dietary choices could help protect the aging brain.
While the findings are considered preliminary, researchers say they strengthen the case for including nuts as part of a healthy eating pattern.
Regular nut consumption was linked to a significantly lower long-term risk of dementia in a large international study
involving more than 17,000 adults.
The research was led by scientists from the Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital and School of Public Health at Zhejiang University School of Medicine, the Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Intelligent Preventive Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Tongji Medical College at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the University of Copenhagen, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, the Institute of Health Carlos III, and the Institut d'Investigació Sanitària Pere Virgili.
Tracking thousands of adults for many years
The researchers analyzed data from three major long-term studies: the Health and Retirement Study in the United States, the Framingham Offspring Study, and the Whitehall II Study in the United Kingdom.
Altogether, 17,349 adults aged 45 years and older who were free of dementia at the start of the research were followed for up to 18 years.
During more than 190,000 person-years of follow-up, 992 participants developed dementia. The investigators compared dementia rates among people who ate no nuts, those who consumed between 0.1 and 5 grams daily, and those who consumed more than 5 grams each day.
They adjusted the results for numerous factors, including age, education, body weight, smoking, physical activity, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, depression, calorie intake, and overall diet quality.
In the pooled analysis, people eating 0.1 to 5 grams of nuts daily had a 20 percent lower risk of developing dementia compared with non-consumers. Those consuming more than 5 grams daily had a 24 percent lower risk. The researchers also identified a significant dose-response trend, suggesting that dementia risk generally declined as nut intake increased.
Stronger benefits seen at higher intake
One of the most striking findings came from the Health and Retirement Study. Participants in the highest nut consumption group had a 47 percent lower risk of dementia than those with the lowest intake. The analysis also showed that individuals meeting recommended weekly nut intake experienced about a 30 percent reduction in dementia risk.
Interestingly, the research suggested that even relatively small amounts of nuts, well below many dietary recommendations, were linked to measurable benefits. This finding could be important because average nut consumption in many countries remains low, meaning modest dietary improvements may still provide meaningful health
advantages.
This
Medical News report notes that the protective association remained largely consistent after multiple sensitivity analyses. The results continued to hold when researchers excluded participants with previous stroke, adjusted for individual components of the MIND diet, and accounted for alcohol consumption. Although some associations became weaker after excluding dementia cases diagnosed during the first five years, the overall pattern continued to support a protective relationship.
Why nuts may help protect the brain
Researchers believe nuts may benefit the brain through several biological mechanisms. Nuts contain healthy unsaturated fats, including omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E, magnesium, selenium, folate, and numerous antioxidant compounds. Together, these nutrients may reduce inflammation, limit oxidative stress, support healthy nerve cell membranes, improve communication between brain cells, and promote healthier blood vessels that supply oxygen and nutrients to the brain.
The authors also noted that nuts may improve cholesterol levels, insulin sensitivity, and cardiovascular health, all of which are increasingly recognized as important factors influencing dementia risk.
Conclusion
Although the study cannot prove that eating nuts directly prevents dementia because it was observational, it provides compelling evidence that regular nut consumption is associated with better long-term brain health. The consistency of the findings across three large population studies, together with the observed dose-response relationship and supportive biological mechanisms, suggests that adding moderate amounts of nuts to an overall healthy diet could become a practical strategy for reducing dementia risk. The researchers emphasize that larger clinical trials are still needed to determine the ideal type and amount of nuts for maximum protection.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Nutrients.
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/11/1722
For the latest on dementia, keep on logging to Thailand
Medical News.
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https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/alzheimer,-dementia-
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