MADRID (Dispatches) -- According to a European study, a diet rich in plant products reduces the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in the elderly.
The study was carried out by the Biomarkers and Nutritional Food Metabolomics Research Group of the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences of the University of Barcelona (UB) and the CIBER on Frailty and Healthy Aging (CIBERFES).
It was part of the Joint Programming Initiative “A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life” (JPI HDHL), in which 842 people aged over 65 in the Bordeaux and Dijon regions (France) participated over 12 years.
The study analyses the relationship between the metabolism of dietary components, intestinal microbiota, endogenous metabolism and cognitive impairment.
The results reveal a protective association between metabolites derived from cocoa, coffee, mushrooms and red wine, microbial metabolism of polyphenol-rich foods (apple, cocoa, green tea, blueberries, oranges or pomegranates) and cognitive impairment in the elderly.