Vegetables may keep brains young

Study: Vegetables may keep brains young

CHICAGO -- New research on vegetables and aging gives mothers

another reason to say "I told you so." It found that eating vegetables

appears to help keep the brain young and may slow the mental

decline sometimes associated with growing old.

On measures of mental sharpness, older people who ate more than

two servings of vegetables daily appeared about five years younger

at the end of the six-year study than those who ate few or

no vegetables.

The research in almost 2,000 Chicago-area men and women doesn't

prove that vegetables reduce mental decline, but it adds to mounting

evidence pointing in that direction. The findings also echo previous

research in women only.

Green leafy vegetables including spinach, kale and collards appeared

to be the most beneficial. The researchers said that may be because

they contain healthy amounts of vitamin E, an antioxidant that is

believed to help fight chemicals produced by the body that can

damage cells.

Vegetables generally contain more vitamin E than fruits, which

were not linked with slowed mental decline in the study. Vegetables

also are often eaten with healthy fats such as salad oils, which

help the body absorb vitamin E and other antioxidants, said lead

author Martha Clare Morris, a researcher at the Rush Institute for

Healthy Aging at Chicago's Rush University Medical Center.

The fats from healthy oils can help keep cholesterol low and

arteries clear, which both contribute to brain health.

The study was published in this week's issue of the journal

Neurology and funded with grants from the National Institute on Aging.

"This is a sound paper and contributes to our understanding of

cognitive decline," said Dr. Meir Stampfer of Harvard's School of

Public Health.

"The findings specific for vegetables and not fruit add further

credibility that this is not simply a marker of a more healthful

lifestyle," said Stampfer, who was not involved in the research.

The research involved 1,946 people aged 65 and older who filled out

questionnaires about their eating habits. A vegetable serving

equaled about a half-cup chopped or one cup if the vegetable was

a raw leafy green like spinach.

They also had mental function tests three times over about six years;

about 60 percent of the study volunteers were black.

The tests included measures of short-term and delayed memory,

which asked these older people to recall elements of a story that

had just been read to them. The participants also were given a

flashcard-like exercise using symbols and numbers.

Overall, people did gradually worse on these tests over time, but

those who ate more than two vegetable servings a day had about

40 percent less mental decline than those who ate few or

no vegetables. Their test results resembled what would be expected

in people about five years younger, Morris said,

The study also found that people who ate lots of vegetables were

more physically active, adding to evidence that "what's good for

your heart is good for your brain," said neuroscientist Maria Carillo,

director of medical and scientific relations for the Alzheimer's

Association.

The study examined mental decline but did not look at whether

any of the study volunteers developed Alzheimer's disease.

By Lindsey Tanner

AP Medical Writer

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/health/1500AP_Diet_Vegetables_Aging.html

October 23, 2006