Plant-based diet linked to lower dementia risk in people with cardiovascular disease
Eating a healthy plant-based diet may lower the risk of dementia in older people with cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, or stroke. This is shown by a new study from Karolinska Institutet, published in JACC: Advances.
Cardiometabolic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes, are well-known risk factors for dementia. Research suggests that a plant-based diet, which emphasizes plant foods and limits meat and other animal products, may help prevent and manage these diseases. This study explored whether such a diet might also help reduce dementia risk among people with these conditions.
The study followed over 71,000 UK Biobank participants for up to 15 years, all aged 55 or older and initially free from dementia.
People with at least one cardiometabolic disease had nearly twice the risk of developing dementia compared to those without these conditions. However, this risk varied noticeably when dietary patterns were considered. People with cardiometabolic diseases who ate a healthy plant-based diet had significantly reduced dementia risk, whereas those consuming mostly processed plant-based foods – such as sugary drinks, refined grains, and sweets – had elevated risk.
“Our results suggest that the quality of the plant-based diet could be crucial,” says first author Michelle Dunk, affiliated researcher in Professor Weili Xu’s group at the Aging Research Center (ARC), Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet. “It is not just about eating more plant-based foods – it is about choosing whole, minimally processed plant foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds.”
The study also found that other healthy lifestyle behaviours, such as being physically active, not smoking, and limiting alcohol consumption, were linked to lower dementia risk – but mainly among those who did not already eat a healthy plant-based diet.
Given the observational nature of this study, further research is needed to confirm causality. In the meantime, these findings add to growing evidence in support of a diet rich in whole plant foods for potential dementia risk modification, especially for those with cardiometabolic diseases.
The study was funded by, among others, the Swedish Research Council, Forte, Karolinska Institutet, Demensfonden, and Lindhés Advokatbyrå AB. The researchers state that there are no conflicts of interest.
Publication
"Plant-Based Diet Quality, Healthy Lifestyle, and Dementia Risk in Older Adults With Cardiometabolic Diseases"
Michelle M. Dunk, Abigail Dove, Jiao Wang, Sakura Sakakibara, Adrián Carballo-Casla, Weili Xu
JACC: Advances, Volume 4, Issue 11, Part 1, 2025; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.102229