{
  "abstract": "Background/Objectives: Several dietary interventions of blueberry intake have been performed for a wide variety of clinical outcomes (e.g., cardiovascular, bone), but none have been conducted in older adults with mild depressive symptoms and low activity. Such individuals may represent a unique group who may be in particular need of a lifestyle change, but lack the motivation to engage in an intervention. Thus, our goal was to test the feasibility of a dietary intervention in which older adults with mild depressive symptoms and low activity were randomly assigned to consume 48 g of freeze-dried blueberry or placebo powder each day for 3 months. Methods: Individuals were recruited by various methods (e.g., targeted web-based advertisements, flyers, etc.). Our primary assessment of feasibility was retention rate (e.g., the percentage of individuals that completed the intervention out of the total randomized); however, other metrics like recruitment rate, safety, and compliance were also evaluated. We pre-specified that the study would be considered feasible if 80% of the individuals that were randomized to the intervention completed the study. Results: Our study found that 76% (95%CI: 59–93; n = 22 out of 29) of the individuals randomized to the intervention went on to complete the intervention, which is close to, but does not satisfy our pre-specified feasibility threshold. Among individuals that completed the study, compliance with the study powder over the 3 months was relatively high (≥87% in both groups). There were no serious adverse events, and only 10 adverse events that occurred similarly across groups (n = 6 in placebo, n = 4 in blueberry). Conclusions: Together, our data provides evidence that a dietary intervention supplementing a relatively high dose of blueberry powder in a unique population of older adults is possible and adherence was high among those that completed the intervention.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA",
    "Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA 02131, USA",
    "School of Medicine, Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111, USA"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 6,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Courtney L. Millar",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1667-2106"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Alyssa B. Dufour",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8061-9599"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Alex Wolfe"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Jasmin Kuo"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Douglas P. Kiel",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8474-0310"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Lewis A. Lipsitz",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2344-1274"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmpaajrd0xaq5.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/nu18213694",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "cmpaajrd0xaq5",
  "issns": [
    "2072-6643"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3694",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-07",
  "publisher": "MDPI AG",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmpaajrd0xaq5.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-10T00:21:40Z",
      "native_id": "10.3390/nu18213694",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3694"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "issn:2072-6643",
      "subfield": "nutrition"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Feasibility of Implementing a Dietary Intervention in Older Adults with Mild Depressive Symptoms and Low Activity: Lessons Learned",
  "title_text": "Feasibility of Implementing a Dietary Intervention in Older Adults with Mild Depressive Symptoms and Low Activity: Lessons Learned",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-10T00:21:40Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmpaajrd0xaq5",
  "venue": "Nutrients",
  "versions": []
}