TOPLINE:

Among women, adherence to Mediterranean (MED) and Mediterranean-Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diets was not associated with the overall incidence of Parkinson's disease. However, higher adherence was linked to a lower incidence in those younger than 71 years, with no benefit observed in those aged 71 years or older.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers in France conducted a prospective cohort study to evaluate whether adherence to MED and MIND diets is associated with the incidence of Parkinson's disease, while minimising reverse causation, and to determine whether these associations differ by age.
• The study included 71,542 women (mean age, 52.9 years) from the French cohort who were followed up to 20 years, of whom 845 developed Parkinson's disease.
• Adherence to MED and MIND diets was assessed at baseline using dietary data traced through the 208-item semiquantitative dietary questionnaire, and dietary exposure was lagged by 5 years to address the potential for reverse causation.

TAKEAWAY:

• Adherence to either the MED or MIND diet was not associated with the overall incidence of Parkinson's disease.
• Women with high adherence to MED and MIND diets had a 24% (hazard ratio [HR], 0.76; 95% CI, 0.58-1.00) and 25% (HR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.58-0.97) lower incidence of Parkinson's disease, respectively, before 71 years of age than those with low or medium adherence (P for interaction < .05 for both).
• In the MED diet, a higher intake of legumes and a high unsaturated-to-saturated fat ratio were associated with a reduced incidence of Parkinson's disease among women younger than 71 years. Similarly, in the MIND diet, a higher intake of beans was strongly associated with a lower incidence of Parkinson's disease among women in the same age group (P for trend < .05 for all).
• In women aged 71 years or older, no significant association was observed between adherence to MED and MIND diets and the incidence of Parkinson's disease.

IN PRACTICE:

"In women, the MED and MIND diets were associated with lower incidence of PD [Parkinson's disease] < 71 years," the authors wrote.

"Further studies are warranted to confirm our findings, to understand the effects of individual components of dietary patterns, and to elucidate underlying mechanisms," they added.

SOURCE:

This study was led by Mariem Hajji-Louati, PhD, Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Inserm, Gustave Roussy, CESP, Paris, France. It was published online on January 06, 2026, in Annals of Neurology.

LIMITATIONS:

Data on diet were assessed only at baseline, which may not have reflected changes over time, potentially leading to exposure misclassification. The use of self-reported data on diet may have introduced non-differential exposure misclassification. This study included only women, limiting the generalisability to men.

DISCLOSURES:

This study was supported by the Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale, Gustave Roussy Institute, and French League against Cancer for the constitution and maintenance of the cohort. The authors declared having no conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.