Study: Diet could slow Alzheimer's

BARCELONA, Spain, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A diet rich in antioxidants could delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease or even slow down its evolution, researchers in Spain say.

Study leader Mercedes Unzeta of the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona and colleagues said their research suggests the neural networks of the adult brain susceptible to being destroyed by age and neural diseases such as Alzheimer's disease can be strengthened through increasing dietary polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids.

In the study, a cream rich in both polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids -- a patented mixture of dried fruits, nuts and vegetable oils made by La Morella Nuts in Reus near Tarragona -- was added to the normal diet of mice.

The study, scheduled to be published in the journal of Alzheimer's Disease, finds mice eating the cream for 40 days had a significantly higher amount of brain stem cells than the mice not eating the cream.

Eating the cream was also linked to much less oxidative damage when exposed to the hydroxide peroxide, the study said.

Polyphenols can be found in tea, beer, grapes, wine, olive oil, cocoa, nuts and other fruits and vegetables. Polyunsaturated fatty acids can be found in blue fish and vegetables such as corn, soy beans, sunflowers and pumpkins, the researchers said.