A new study conducted by researchers at Columbia University in New York determined that a diet rich in olive oil can reduce the risk of a person developing Alzheimer's Disease by as much as 40 percent.

The results of the study were published in the medical journal 'Annals of Neurology' on Tuesday.

The study monitored 2,258 healthy older people and monitored their diet. The subjects were examined every six months for up to four years. The researchers found that those people who most closely followed a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, some fish and alcohol with little dairy food and meat had the lowest risk of Alzheimer's. Their risk was reduced by 39 to 40 percent.

Those people who only partially followed the diet had a reduced risk of 15 to 20 percent. The subjects who consumed the 'typical American diet' of hamburgers and ice cream had the greatest chance of eventually developing Alzheimer's disease.

Past studies have indicated that the Mediterranean diet helped to reduce the chance of high blood pressure and heart disease. This is the first report that examined the diet's ability to reduce Alzheimer's.

The study offers a valuable tool for people of any age who hope to avoid the horrors of Alzheimer's disease.

Brad Kurtzberg

Source: North American Olive Oil Association website