Blueberry juice 'boosts memory in older adults'

Washington, Jan 21 (ANI): A few glasses of blueberry juice a day may help improve memory in older adults, says a new study.

In a report, which appears in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, researchers have stated that blueberries - one of the richest sources of healthful antioxidants and other so-called phytochemicals - improve memory.

They said the study, which involved scientists from the University of Cincinnati, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Canadian department of agriculture, establishes a basis for comprehensive human clinical trials to determine whether blueberries really deserve their growing reputation as a memory enhancer.

Robert Krikorian and colleagues point out that previous studies in laboratory animals suggest that eating blueberries may help boost memory in the aged.

In the study, one group of volunteers in their 70s with early memory decline drank the equivalent of 2-2 l/2 cups of a commercially available blueberry juice every day for two months. A control group drank a beverage without blueberry juice. The blueberry juice group showed significant improvement on learning and memory tests, the scientists say.

"These preliminary memory findings are encouraging and suggest that consistent supplementation with blueberries may offer an approach to forestall or mitigate neurodegeneration," said the report. (ANI)