3 products to improve brain function for elderly

What people eat can affect not only their physical condition but also the brain function in old age, Iowa State University (ISU) noted, as their study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

The study authors analyzed data collected from 1,787 people aged 46 to 77 in the UK using the UK Biobank, a large-scale biomedical data and research resource containing detailed genetic information and health data from half a million participants in the UK.

The study participants responded to the questions about their food and alcohol consumption at baseline and during two follow-up assessments. Participants were asked in the food frequency questionnaire about the consumption of fresh fruits, dried fruits, raw vegetables and salads, cooked vegetables, oily fish, lean fish, processed meat, poultry, beef, lamb, pork, cheese, bread, cereals, tea, coffee, beer and cider, red and white wine, champagne and liqueur.

As it turned out, the regular consumption of three products - cheese, red wine and lamb - had a positive effect on the brain function for elderly.

Here are the four most important conclusions of the study:

• To date, cheese is the most protective food against age-related cognitive issues.
• Daily consumption of red wine improves cognitive impairment.
• Weekly consumption of lamb, not other red meat, improves long-term cognitive impairment.
• Excessive salt consumption is harmful, especially for those who are already at increased risk of Alzheimer's disеаsе, and may need to monitor their consumption to avoid cognitive problems over time.