Walnuts May Slow Cognitive Impairment In Older People

Walnuts May Slow Cognitive Impairment in Older People

Eating walnuts on a daily basis can help slow cognitive decline in older adults who are predisposed to it.

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Eating walnuts on a daily basis can help slow cognitive decline in older adults who are predisposed to it. A group of American and Spanish scientists have published new data in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Walnuts contain omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols, which work against two important causes of cognitive decline - oxidative stress and inflammation.

Researchers randomly divided 636 elderly people from Loma Linda (California, USA) and Barcelona into two groups. For two years, participants in the experimental group ate walnuts daily, and participants in the control abstained from eating walnuts.

The study showed that introducing walnuts into the diet had little effect on the cognitive abilities of healthy older people.

At the same time, there were positive changes in those participants who smoked more and had lower baseline neuropsychological test results. According to magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and subsequent analysis, walnuts are able to delay cognitive decline in higher-risk subgroups.

“Despite the marginal result, improvements are possible in the long term if the experiment is carried out over a longer period of time. Further research is certainly justified based on the data we received. This is especially true for vulnerable populations who will benefit most from adding walnuts and other nuts to their diet,”said Joan Sabate of Loma Linda University School of Public Health, Principal Investigator.