Yes, Olive Oil Helps to Preserve Your Memory and Prevent Alzheimer’s

Yes, Olive Oil Helps to Preserve Your Memory and Prevent Alzheimer’s

Not only is it delicious, but a Mediterranean diet could help you live long a prosper, this study has found.

If you’re a nun living in a controlled environment doing crossword puzzles everyday, and you’ve written your own wordy autobiography, your memory might be pretty good.

And the same could be true if you eat your salmon regularly. But the best benefit you may reap is a bit greasy. You’re helping your brain if you dip that succulent French bread in olive oil before indulging your taste buds. Especially extra-virgin olive oil.

Related: 3 Protein Myths That Have No Meat to Them

A relatively recent study done at Temple University has found that the ancient ingredient can prevent cognitive decline.

How? Olive oil protects the brain’s memory system and learning ability. It does so by reducing the formation of the classic markers of Alzheimer’s disease: those nasty amyloid-beta plaques and formidable neurofibrillary tangles that can occur in the aging brain.

Preserving Neurons

To make their discovery, researchers fed mice two different diets. One group had a regular “mouse” diet and the other enjoyed food rich in extra-virgin olive oil. This was introduced when the mice were 6 months old, and well before they developed Alzheimer’s symptoms.

What was found? According to researchers, at first there was no difference between the two groups. But by 9 to 12 months old, there was a pronounced divide. The mice eating the extra virgin olive oil-enriched diet performed significantly better on tests designed to evaluate working their memory, spatial memory, and learning abilities compared with those on the regular diet.

Related: Eating Fish Once a Week Reduces Risk of MS

“One thing that stood out immediately was synaptic integrity,” said senior investigator Domenico Praticò, MD.

Researchers say the strength of the connections between neurons was better preserved in the rodents eating the extra-virgin olive oil.

In addition, compared to mice on a regular diet, the brain cells from animals in the olive oil group showed a dramatic increase in something called nerve cell autophagy activation. This is ultimately responsible for reducing any plaque build-up on the brain.

So, pour it on and eat up. Olive oil is delicious in salad dressings, sauces and so much more. It’s easy to incorporate it into just about any diet, and commonly available in most grocery stores.

What’s next? Scientists hope to look examine the effects of the magic sauce on mice who’ve already developed Alzheimer’s.

Sounds like a good excuse for some fine dining.

Facebook Comments