A closer look at DIRECT PLUS reporting: a green-Mediterranean dietary pattern, blood-protein findings and the limits of claims about brain health.
In a report updated on September 19, 2025, The Economic Times described findings from the DIRECT PLUS trial linking a green-Mediterranean diet with lower levels of blood proteins associated with accelerated brain aging. The 18-month comparison examined different dietary approaches.
The finding is worth revisiting as an example of how nutrition research is translated into everyday health advice. Its meaning depends on two details: the foods that were compared and the outcome researchers measured. Both deserve more attention than a standout ingredient.
According to The Economic Times, nearly 300 people took part in the comparison. The report describes three approaches:
The green-Mediterranean pattern included vegetables and whole grains alongside olive oil. Fish and poultry were also part of it. The report describes daily green tea and Mankai shakes within this pattern. Mankai is an edible aquatic plant also called duckweed.
The report identifies Clinical Nutrition as the journal in which the study appeared. It describes a collaboration involving Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. The University of Leipzig was also involved.
The central result, as reported by The Economic Times, was lower blood levels of certain proteins associated with accelerated brain aging among participants following the green-Mediterranean diet. Here, the term biomarker refers to those measured blood-protein signals.
The article identifies Anat Meir as a study co-leader and Iris Shai as its senior author. It attributes to Meir the idea that blood-protein changes might help researchers monitor how diet and lifestyle relate to brain aging before cognitive symptoms appear. That is the researchers' interpretation of the potential value of these measurements.
The first distinction is between the news report and the original study. The Economic Times does not name the proteins or quantify their changes. It also leaves out the exact participant count and participant characteristics. Group-by-group results and statistical analyses are not supplied.
Without those details, readers cannot judge how large or consistent the reported differences were. These are limits of the news account, not demonstrated flaws in the original trial. The report does not provide enough information for an independent assessment of the full clinical results.
The second distinction concerns the outcome: the proteins were associated with accelerated brain aging, while the reported result concerned their blood levels. That is not proof of dementia prevention or improvements in memory and focus. The article also does not demonstrate earlier diagnosis. Establishing those benefits would require evidence about the benefits themselves rather than treating a related biological signal as the same thing.
The third distinction concerns cause. The green-Mediterranean intervention combined multiple foods. The reported comparison therefore does not establish that green tea or Mankai independently produced the protein differences. Giving either ingredient sole credit would go beyond the study as described.
The Economic Times also proposes anti-inflammatory compounds in green tea and Mankai as a possible explanation. It does not report that this mechanism was directly tested. This remains a hypothesis rather than an established account of how the finding occurred.
For a broader perspective on interpreting these measurements, see our coverage of dietary patterns and aging-related biomarkers.
The most grounded practical reading begins with the foods the report actually lists. Vegetables and whole grains sit alongside olive oil within the pattern. Fish and poultry are included too. This gives readers a concrete picture of the intervention rather than a vague label such as a longevity diet.
The Economic Times also attributes comments to Shai emphasizing dietary adjustments involving green tea and plant-based proteins as well as healthier fats. This places the researchers' public discussion alongside the broader mix of foods described in the intervention.
For someone interested in broad eating habits, the useful emphasis is the overall mix of foods. That keeps the research connected to ordinary meal choices instead of making a distinctive ingredient the center of the story. It also leaves room to discuss what a dietary pattern means in a person's own circumstances.
The report's description of daily tea and shakes documents what participants did, rather than providing a personalized prescription. Readers considering changes for individual health needs can discuss the overall pattern with a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian. Bringing the full food pattern into that conversation keeps attention on how it fits existing habits and individual needs. It also avoids treating a study's menu as a universal meal plan.
Readers interested in the wider pattern-based question can also read our analysis of plant-forward eating and biological aging. The useful habit is to compare the dietary pattern with the outcome being discussed. A claim about a measured marker should stay connected to that marker.
The Economic Times says more research is needed to understand long-term effects. A useful next question is whether the reported blood-protein differences connect with meaningful measures of brain health over time. Answering it would help clarify how much weight these signals should carry in decisions about food and health. DIRECT PLUS is therefore worth following as research on dietary patterns, with attention to the measured outcomes rather than promises attached to particular ingredients.
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