According to a study supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health and published in the journal Neurology, eating leafy greens, vegetables and berries, and drinking orange juice, was associated with a lower risk of memory loss as men age.
The study analyzed data which surveyed 27,000 men and their dietary consumption of fruits, vegetables, berries, and orange juice. The study lasted 20 years and surveys were done every four years to assess their dietary consumption of these foods. Participants were also given tests of memory every four years.
The study’s author C. Yuan of Harvard’s School of Public Health concludes that “One of the most important factors in this study is that we were able to research and track such a large group of men over a 20-year period of time, allowing for very telling results. Our studies provide further evidence dietary choices can be important to maintain your brain health.”
The participants were divided into five groups based on their fruit and vegetable consumption.
The men who consumed the most vegetables were 34 percent less likely to have memory loss compared with then men who consumed the least amount of vegetables.
The men who drank orange juice every day were 47 percent less likely to develop poor thinking skills than the men who drank less than one serving per month.
The men who ate the most fruit each day were also less likely to develop poor thinking skills.
It appears that getting an earlier start eating these healthier foods was an important factor. They found that people who ate larger amounts of fruits and vegetables 20 years earlier had the best results.