Q: With so much in the news these days about memory loss and dementia, I wonder if any foods might help to stave off declining memory?

A: A sure-fire preventative measure or cure for memory loss is likely to come only through medical advances that identify causes and ultimately develop drugs to help. In the meantime, it is understandable that we should want to know if there is anything that we can do to hang on to our memory for as long as possible.

Some interesting pointers have come to light over the past few years, including the idea that restricting calorie intake may be beneficial. It seems that lowering our calorie intake by a third, mostly through reducing portion sizes, may improve the outcome of memory tests.

This could be because weight loss lowers insulin levels, which potentially leads to less memory-damaging insulin inflammation in the brain. This doesn't mean that everyone should start dieting like crazy to squeeze into size zero jeans. While high body mass indices do lead to poorer results in so-called Mini-Mental State Examination (which, while not diagnostic, is the most commonly used instrument for screening cognitive function and involves a ten-minute test involving recall, orientation, attention and calculation), so too has being under weight. Perhaps not surprisingly then, a happy medium, with your weight falling within a healthy body mass index, is probably the best place to be when trying to hang on to your grey matter.

I have also discovered that swapping to a mainly Mediterranean-style diet may help. This involves basing meals and snacks on plenty of vegetables and fruits, legumes and wholegrain cereals, plus some oily fish and other seafoods. Small amounts of red meat (a couple of small servings a week) and dairy foods such as butter and cream are eaten in these diets, along with moderate amounts of alcohol (often red wine) and unsaturated fats such as olive oil.

When scientists in the US looked at groups of people living in New York, they found that those who most faithfully followed the principles of Mediterranean-style eating were 28 per cent less likely to experience mild cognitive impairment when compared with those who ate a more traditional Western diet. Those already experiencing symptoms of mild impairment were also found to be at almost 50 per cent less risk of progressing to Alzheimer's if they adjusted their diets.

In other studies, French researchers have linked eating plenty of foods rich in the super nutrients called flavonoids to slowing cognitive decline. Since flavonoid-rich foods often appear in Mediterranean diets (including onions, aubergines, endive, red peppers, Lollo Rosso lettuce, berries, citrus fruits and red wine), this could help to explain its potential protective effects.

Experts say that we shouldn't jump to firm conclusions from the relatively small amounts of evidence available to us to date; we can't say for sure that switching to a Mediterranean diet will stave off forgetfulness, or indeed Alzheimer's.

But being a normal weight and eating lots of fruits and vegetables, wholegrain foods and pulses, and not too much saturated fat, is known to be good for many aspects of our health. So knowing that it may also help to maintain a vibrant and active memory could be just the incentive that you need to make some dietary switches - not just for a week or two in a burst of enthusiasm, but for good.

E-mail your nutrition questions to amanda.ursell@thetimes.co.uk

Keep a sound mind: protecting the brain

Regular walking, gardening and stair-climbing can help to reduce the risk of vascular dementia (the slow, progressive worsening of memory), according to researchers at the S.Orsola Malpighi University Hospital in Bologna, Italy. They discovered that these activities were associated with a 73 per cent risk reduction, probably by encouraging the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the brain.

Scientists from Tufts University in Boston say that a trio of new international studies suggest that consumption of omega-3 fatty acids and fish protects against cognitive decline, dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Given the proven benefits of fatty fish and omega-3s in cardiovascular health, it's wise to make fish part of your healthy diet.

Research suggests that drinking coffee may reduce the risk of dementia. Work on animals suggests that drinking the equivalent of one cup a day can help to keep the blood-brain barrier (which protects the brain from damaging effects of toxins, infections and the effects of raised cholesterol) intact.