Your Brain on Fruit
Reaching for the fruit bowl might keep your brain sharp as a tack when you get older.
That’s because big fruit-eaters — besides getting boatloads of good-for-you nutrients — score high when it comes to memory and reasoning skills.
Mind Your Flavonoids
The reason for fruit’s brain-boosting effect? It’s all about the flavonoids, those amazing antioxidants that fight disease and might be one of your best defenses against cognitive decline. In a study, people who had the highest flavonoid intake performed best throughout a 10-year period on tests of verbal fluency, logical reasoning, and visual memory.
How to Get Your Fill
Sneaking more fruit into your diet is one way to load up on flavonoids, but vegetables like onions and broccoli provide some, too. You’ll need a wide variety of fruit and veggies in your diet to get the RealAge-recommended 31 milligrams of flavonoids per day. You can also sip some with several cups of tea or juices like cranberry every day.
Flavonoids Fever
Cranberries may help raise HDL (good) cholesterol and thwart plaque-building oxidation of the bad kind (LDL). Not only that, but some studies also link the almighty cranberry’s killer flavonoid combination with cancer-fighting properties. And cranberry flavonols — particularly quercetin — appear to help quell inflammation.
For All Seasons
So don’t forget this tangy tongue teaser after the holidays. Load up on dried cranberries to mix into your granola, top fish with fresh cranberry relish, and bake fresh cranberries into cookies, muffins, and breads. You can also treat yourself to a glass or two of cranberry juice (choose diet varieties for less sugar and fewer calories). The bonus with the juice: It may help ward off urinary tract infections.
Browse Encouraging Health for more health ideas.
fruit, flavonoids, brain health, mental acuity
fruit, flavonoids, brain health, mental acuity
Leave a Reply