Blueberries for Brain Health
Once you know about the brain health-boosting benefits of blueberries, you’ll sure be motivated to start incorporating them into your diet on a daily basis. Often dubbed the King of Superfoods, blueberries equal brain health. The key to their brain-boosting power is their high levels of antioxidants. These help to balance the number of free radicals in the body to counteract oxidative stress, supporting a healthy functioning immune system.
Oxidative stress can speed up the brain’s aging process, having a negative impact on brain function. If the balance of free radicals, which are created during the process of oxidation, becomes larger than the levels of antioxidants, there can be negative impacts on the body’s proteins, DNA and fatty tissues. The antioxidants in blueberries have been shown to protect against these free radicals, and slow down memory impairments and motor coordination related to the aging process. They do this by reducing the oxidative stress on our nerve cells, allowing cell function to run smoothly
How blueberries boost the brain
Scientists have discovered through studies of healthy older adults that those who consumed concentrated blueberry juice every day, the equivalent of 250g whole blueberries, showed improvements to cognitive function, blood flow to the brain, and activation of brain areas associated with memory function.
The key to blueberries brain-boosting power are their antioxidants, particularly flavonoids, which have shown to promote these effects. They have also shown to keep the brain more active throughout the day of consuming them. In a recent study, people who consumed a blueberry smoothie in the morning did much better at mid-afternoon tasks than those who didn’t and managed to avoid the 3pm slump completely. It was found to be the antioxidants that stimulated the blood flow and oxygen to the brain to help keep the mind fresh.
Blueberries offer many other benefits to brain health including:
- Preventing age-related memory loss
- Lowering dementia risk
- Reducing effects of Alzheimer’s
- Boosting brain cells
- Increasing concertation and focus
- Improving mental health (anxiety and depression)
The superfood is also packed filled with nutritious vitamin C, K, manganese, and fibre adding so many other benefits to your health. Blueberries won’t necessarily solve cognitive problems, but they certainly do help – berry-by-berry!
