Olive oil is now a dementia-fighting ingredient

Forget about lemon, the ingredient you want to put in all of your food is olive oil it turns out.

According to a new study published in the Experimental Gerontology journal, consuming olive oil daily can dramatically reduce one’s risk of experiencing cognitive decline later in life.

The link between olive oil and Alzheimer’s

The authors were able to demonstrate this by reviewing fibrinolytic factors linked to Alzheimer’s disease (amyloid plaques, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, and neurofibrillary tangles) among a study sample comprised of older participants.

“The daily consumption of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) in Mediterranean nutrition is tightly associated with lower frequency of many diseases’ appearance, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD),” the authors wrote in the new paper.

“We, here, present a biochemical study, as a continuation of a clinical trial of a cohort of 84 participants, focusing on the pleiotropic effect of the annual EVOO consumption on the fibrinolytic factors of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) patients.”

During the follow-up analysis, which took place a year after the beginning of the study period, it was revealed that participants who consumed EVOO daily evidenced reduced hallmarks associated with AD. Meanwhile, those who did not appeared to experience the exact inverse.

The researchers suspect that natural antioxidant properties and free radical exposure may be behind the outcomes indexed above to some capacity.

Antioxidants have been highlighted in several independently conducted studies for their impact on dementia prevention. They have also been cited for their use as therapeutics designed to limit the disease’s pathology in patients previously diagnosed with dementia.

“Several studies suggest that ‘oxidative stress’ may play a role in the changes in the brain that cause Alzheimer’s disease,” the Alzheimer’s Society reports.

“Oxidative stress can lead to ‘attack’ on brain cells by chemicals called free radicals. It is these free radicals that cause oxidative damage. One study has shown that brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease show lesions that are typically associated with free radical exposure.”

The Mediterranean Diet continues to reign

The strength of the new paper may additionally be due to correlative means. For instance, olive oil is a major component of the Mediterranean diet. This particular regimen has been studied to contribute to longevity and cognitive health among older populations.

More generally, the  Mediterranean diet has been documented to reduce one’s risk of dying at any age by as much as 20%.

“A true Mediterranean diet is based on the region’s traditional fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, seafood, olive oil, and dairy—with perhaps a glass or two of red wine. That’s how the inhabitants of Crete, Greece, and southern Italy ate circa 1960, when their rates of chronic disease were among the lowest in the world and their life expectancy among the highest, despite having only limited medical services,” the authors of a recent paper write.

“There is some evidence that eating a Mediterranean-style diet can reduce the risk of developing problems with memory and thinking, and getting some forms of dementia.”

On the other end, participants featured in the new paper who rarely if ever consumed virgin olive oil may have adhered to regimens that independently increased their risk for developing dementia.