The USF researchers compared three groups of older rats. One group ate a diet supplemented by spirulina, a blue-green algae high in antioxidant activity. The second group was fed a daily ration of apple, a food moderate in antioxidant activity, with their rat chow. The third group ate a cucumber-enriched diet, low in antioxidant activity.
Aged rats fed either spirulina-or apple-enriched diets for two weeks demonstrated improved neuron function, a suppression of inflammatory substances in the brain, and a decrease in malondialdehyde (MDA), a marker for oxidative damage. In fact, spirulina reversed the impairment in adrenergic neural function normally associated with aging. There was no improvement in rats fed a diet supplemented with cucumber.
"Not all foods are created equal," Dr. Bickford said. "Cucumbers taste good and have lots of fiber. But unlike spirulina and apples, they are not rich in phytochemicals that have antioxidant or anti-inflammatory effects in the brain."
The research has hopeful implications for the prevention of neurodegenerative disorders in an increasingly aging population, but still must be tested in humans, Dr. Bickford said.
Until then, the USF neuroscientist recommends that daily diets include a variety of richly colored fruits and vegetables the most colorful ones tend to pack the greatest antioxidant punch. She favors spinach salads for lunch and routinely snacks on blueberries and strawberries.
"Studies like these are lending scientific credibility to what nutritionists, and our mothers, have been telling us for years," Dr. Bickford said. "Eat your fru
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Contact: Anne DeLotto Baier
abaier@hsc.usf.edu
813-974-3300
University of South Florida Health
15-Jul-2002