Dementia affects more than one million people in the UK. By 2040, this figure is expected to rise to 1.4 million people. Dementia is incurable and a real public health problem whose development is largely attributed to age and genetics.
However, the latest research shows that other risk factors such as diet play a role in preventing dementia. Researchers at Queen’s University Belfast, analysing the dietary data of more than 120,000 British adults aged 40 to 70 over a six-year period, found the effects of tea, red wine, berries and dark chocolate on the risk of dementia.
Tea, wine, red, berry and dark chocolate: flavonoids in common
Scientists, reports the Daily Mail in his article of September 18, 2024, believe that flavonoids can have a protective effect
on brain cells. Flavonoids are plant compounds found in tea, red wine, berries and dark chocolate.
According to the results of this study conducted by scientists from Queen’s University Belfast, eating a few squares of chocolate with the afternoon cup of tea could reduce the risk of dementia by more than a quarter. Flavonoids are thought to block the build-up of beta-amyloid plaque, “the hallmark of Alzheimer’s“, scientists say.
Reduce the risk of dementia: consume flavonoids daily
This scientific study found that consuming six additional servings of flavonoid-rich foods per day is associated with a 28% reduction of the risk of dementia. Scientists are particularly talking about berries, tea and red wine.
What’s more, the greatest risk reduction was seen in participants who ate at least two of the following foods a day: five cups of tea, one glass of red wine, half a portion of berries. Professor Aedin Cassidy said: “The results were more pronounced in people with high genetic risk as well as in those with symptoms of depression“.
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