Cheese consumption may be associated with slower brain aging, according to a study of more than 1,600 people monitored for about 12 years. The researchers found that people who consumed higher amounts of cheese showed a slower reduction in the volume of certain brain regions, including those involved in memory. The result is surprising, since cheese is among the foods recommended to be limited in certain diets designed to protect brain health.
The study, published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry and presented by the BMJ Group on October 1, 2026, analyzed the relationship between nutrition and structural changes that occur in the brain with age, writes Science Daily.
The researchers specifically looked at the effects associated with the MIND diet, a diet that combines the principles of the Mediterranean diet with dietary recommendations designed to lower blood pressure.
The overall results showed that people who followed this diet more closely experienced a slower loss of brain tissue. However, the individual food analysis also provided some unexpected results.
Cheese, associated with slower reduction in brain volume
One of the researchers’ most surprising findings concerned cheese consumption.
People who ate more cheese showed a slower decrease in the volume of gray matter and the hippocampus, a brain region essential for memory and learning.
Higher cheese consumption was also associated with slower expansion of the brain’s ventricles, fluid-filled cavities that tend to enlarge as brain tissue shrinks.
The researchers also saw fewer white matter hyperintensities, changes visible on MRI scans that can reflect damage to brain tissue.
The result is all the more interesting since the MIND diet itself recommends limiting cheese consumption, along with butter, red meat, sweets and fried foods.
However, experts caution that these associations do not prove that cheese directly protects neurons or prevents neurodegenerative diseases.
The study followed 1,647 people for about 12 years
For the research, the scientists analyzed the data of 1,647 middle-aged and older adults included in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring, a large research project carried out in the United States.
At the start of the study, the participants had an average age of 60.
They completed questionnaires about their eating habits and had at least two brain MRI scans between 1999 and 2019.
None of the participants had dementia or a history of stroke at the first brain examination.
Over the course of the monitoring, the researchers looked at changes in total brain volume, gray matter, white matter and the hippocampus.
These structures typically undergo changes with age, and certain brain tissue losses are associated with cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases.
The MIND diet, associated with slower brain aging by the equivalent of 2.5 years
The overall results of the study showed that people who followed the MIND diet more closely showed slower structural brain changes.
The researchers rated the participants’ diet on a scale between 0 and 15, with higher values indicating stricter adherence to the recommendations.
Each three-point increase in the score was associated with about a 20% reduction in the rate of gray matter loss.
According to the authors, this difference corresponds to the equivalent of about 2.5 years of delayed brain aging, estimated based on the structural changes seen on MRI.
Participants with higher scores also had slower expansion of the brain’s ventricles, associated with about a year of delayed brain aging.
These results do not mean that the diet actually extends life or that it rejuvenates the brain by 2.5 years, but rather reflects statistical differences in structural brain changes.
Berries and poultry are among the foods with favorable results
In addition to cheese, the researchers identified favorable associations for berries and poultry.
Higher berry consumption was associated with slower expansion of cerebral ventricles.
In the case of poultry, the researchers observed both slower expansion of the ventricles and less reduction in gray matter volume.
The study authors believe that antioxidant-rich foods, such as berries, and quality protein sources may help limit oxidative stress and neuronal damage.
In contrast, higher consumption of sweets was associated with faster expansion of the ventricles and a greater reduction in hippocampal volume.
Fried fast food was, in turn, associated with greater hippocampal volume loss.
Whole grains, another unexpected result
Cheese was not the only food for which the researchers obtained surprising results.
Higher consumption of whole grains, generally considered beneficial for health and recommended in the MIND diet, has been associated with some adverse brain changes.
These included more rapid loss of gray matter and hippocampal volume, as well as greater enlargement of the cerebral ventricles.
However, researchers have not determined that whole grains cause these changes.
Results may be influenced by other dietary characteristics, general health or factors that could not be fully controlled.
Therefore, the study is not a reason to eliminate whole grains from the diet.
The benefits of the diet were more evident in the elderly
The researchers observed that the association between adherence to the MIND diet and slower changes in brain structure was stronger in older participants.
More pronounced favorable results were also identified in physically active individuals as well as those who were not overweight or obese.
These findings suggest that diet may play a more important role when paired with other healthy habits.
However, researchers have not shown that dietary modification can directly prevent Alzheimer’s disease or other neurodegenerative diseases.
Does this mean we should eat more cheese?
The study authors emphasize that the results should be interpreted with caution.
The research is observational, meaning it can identify associations between diet and brain changes, but cannot prove a direct causal relationship.
In addition, dietary habits were assessed by questionnaires, and participants’ responses may contain errors.
The researchers could not completely rule out the influence of genetic factors, dietary changes over time, or mild cognitive problems at the start of monitoring.
Nor can the results regarding cheese consumption be turned into a recommendation to increase the amount of this food.
The study did not establish an optimal amount of cheese to protect the brain, nor did it show that it reduces the risk of dementia.
The researchers’ main conclusion is that following the MIND diet was associated with slower structural aging of the brain, while the unexpected results on cheese and whole grains show that the relationship between diet and brain health is more complex than previously thought.
The findings could contribute to future research into the role of individual foods in maintaining long-term brain health.
