Date Time Mediterranean diet linked to thinking skills People who eat a Mediterranean-style diet-particularly one rich in green leafy vegetables and low in meat-are more likely to stay mentally sharp in later life, a study shows. Closely adhering to a Mediterranean diet was associated with higher scores on a range of memory and thinking tests among adults in their late 70s, the research found. The study found no link, however, between the Mediterranean-style diet and better brain health. Markers of healthy brain ageing – such as greater grey or white matter volume, or fewer white matter lesions-did not differ between those regularly eating a Mediterranean diet and those who did not.