Flavanols: The Real Brain Food

As I suggested in the last memo, the researchers did not prove their hypothesis that there would be an increase in measures of memory in all participants of the clinical trial. While disappointing, the secondary hypothesis might have been even more important because it was statistically significant.

They found that those with the lowest intake of flavanols from foods and drinks had the most improvement in measures of memory function. Makes sense: people who did not eat enough fruits and other foods containing flavanols saw benefits by supplementing with a specific amount of flavanols every day.

Researchers didn’t test to see if eating little to no foods containing flavanol resulted in a decline in memory function; that would fall into the category of “first do no harm.” Understanding that flavanols are beneficial for more than just memory, it would not be responsible to have a person decrease intake of them.

They also did not find additional benefits of taking the supplement for those with the highest intake of flavanols from their diet. That means that a great diet has great benefits.

There are three points we can take from this study:

Regular intake of flavanols from supplements can compensate for weaknesses in the diet.

Eating flavanol-containing foods provides a wide variety of flavonoids including anthocyanidins, flavan-3-ols, flavanones, flavones, and isoflavones. In my opinion, eating and drinking plant-based substances is a better approach; using additional flavonoids from supplements is a great insurance policy.

The memory tests used in the study focused on one area of the brain: the hippocampal area. Supplementation did not appear to impact the prefrontal cortex component of cognitive aging.

If we want to age with a vengeance, I think we should look at it as though every little bit helps. I also think that the earlier we begin developing the habit of eating more fruits and vegetables, plus drinking teas, coffee, and cocoa drinks, the better our brains will be. And as a bonus, the rest of our body gets to enjoy the benefits as well.

What are you prepared to do today?