Resveratrol, a compound found in wine, red grapes, and peanuts, helps prevent age-related memory decline, according to new research.
The compound, which is an antioxidant, has been most widely touted for heart disease protection, but researchers at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine decided to test its effects on the brain, particularly in terms of mood, learning, and memory loss.
Since memory loss is a particular problem in older people, they used aging rats for the study. In rats who did not receive resveratrol, the ability to maintain spatial learning was maintained, but the ability to make new spatial memories declined as the rats aged.
By contrast, both spatial learning and memory improved in resveratrol-treated rats, the study found.
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Also, the brains of the treated rats showed indications of increased blood flow and lower levels of chronic inflammation.