Brickman et al. - Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (2023)
Brickman et al. - Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (2023)
TL;Dr.: In a study published in PNAS, Brickman and colleagues tested dietary flavanols' impact on aging-related memory decline in older adults. The 3,562 study participants were randomly assigned to consume cocoa extract (500 mg of flavanols) or a placebo daily for three years. The primary outcome was improvement in hippocampal-dependent memory after one year. While the overall intervention did not significantly improve memory, habitual flavanol consumption restored memory in participants with lower diet quality or lower flavanol consumption. Moreover, increased flavanol biomarker levels correlated with memory improvement. This evidence suggests low flavanol consumption may contribute to cognitive aging, while flavanol-rich diets could help prevent this.