Obesity poses a serious risk for the development of dementia. One possible reason for this phenomenon is considered to be the excessive consumption of fat-rich foods. Under the guidance of Professor Weimin Guo, scientists have developed an effective way to protect the brain from the harmful effects of a high-fat diet.
A diet rich in fruits and vegetables helps neutralize the negative impact of fatty foods on cognitive functions. In preclinical studies on mice fed a “Western” diet, it was found that adding fruits and vegetables to their diet improved memory and maintained cognitive functions at a high level.
Mice that consumed exclusively fatty foods without plant additives showed a decline in memory. At the same time, in animals receiving plant components, memory improved as the dose of plant products increased. For humans, the optimal dose of fruits and vegetables is 8-9 servings per day, according to the researchers.
Including fruits and vegetables at 15% of the total diet helps reduce weight and decrease oxidative stress, which contributes to the protection of neural pathways and the maintenance of cognitive abilities. In the future, clinical trials on humans are planned, as reported by the scientific journal Nutritional Neuroscience.
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