GOOD age. And if the simple fact of aging was not necessarily synonymous with cognitive decline ? This is what English researchers wanted to prove, through recent works showing a link between certain dietary fiber and our brain capacities. The result is surprising, since it seems that the link between the microbiota And the brain could help improve the memory of the elderly.
Food supplements to boost memory?
Aging is probably one of the predilection subjects of the science. With a global demographic decline, experts want answers. Japan, for example, undergoes the consequences of its aging population. Could the intestinal microbiota regulate and boost our cognitive capacities? And this, even after 60 years? This is quite possible, according to this research. Our scientific knowledge On aging and its effects therefore leap. We know that with age, bacterial diversity loses speed and reacts less well maladies. So we are more fragile.
And this natural upheaval has direct repercussions on our brain
It was in London that the study was done and published in the review Nature Communications. King’s College scientists called on a group of people, more precisely twins, for this test. All were aged Over 60 yearstherefore considered to be senior. The study resulted from a comparison between the two twins, one of which received a food supplement, combining Proteins and vegetable fibersand the other, a simple placebo.
The result is final: the twin having taken the prebiotics given by the researchers had a good score in the Cognitive tests that they passed after taking the supplement. Scientists notably noticed that these participants had made fewer errors during an exercise concerning the visual memory. This specific exercise was integrated into the test to detect the Alzheimer’s disease. The craziest: this positive effect can be seen after only three months.
But then what are the Food supplements that researchers have chosen? These are prebiotics: inulin and fructo-oligosaccharides. The first is notably present in chicory, while the second acts as a natural sweetener. These fibers are not digested, they feed some bacteria which are positive for the microbiota. The latter becomes a more active digestive organ which allows transmission with the nervous system.
For the moment, you have to take this study With tweezers. It only focused on a small number of participants, whose sample was mainly female. We will have to push them research and make new ones on a larger scale to corroborate the results. However, the first data is rather positive. Apart from the bloating sensations, the participants did not undergoside effects.
References of the article:
This simple food supplement boosts the memory of over 60 years in 3 months barely
Where are there the most seniors?