Linda Lombroso, llombros@lohud.com
Walnuts may be the key to preventing Alzheimer’s disease, suggests a new study.
The study, which appears in the October issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, reports that mice fed a diet enriched with walnuts experienced a significant improvement in memory, motor development, learning skills and level of anxiety.
The mice were fed the human equivalent of 1 or 1.5 ounces of walnuts each day — about a handful, or 14 halves of the nut.
Researchers speculate that the antioxidant properties of walnuts may have played a role in protecting the mouse brain from the degeneration that is seen among those with Alzheimer’s disease.
The study, titled “Dietary Supplementation of Walnuts Improves Memory Deficits and Learning Skills in Transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease,” was led by Abha Chauhan, head of the Developmental Neuroscience Laboratory at the New York State Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities (IBR), in Albany.
Erica Leon, a registered dietitian nutritionist in White Plains, says that while the new study is exciting, its findings should be combined with existing research that suggests a diet of whole foods rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory ingredients can be helpful with memory preservation.
Walnuts, she says, are highly concentrated sources of Omega-3 fatty acids.
Leon says that key dietary strategies to help preserve memory include:
• Increasing intake of spices, nuts and seeds, whole grain leafy vegetables and berries.
• Increasing healthy fats (olive and canola oils); seeds like chia, hemp and flax; and Omega-3 fatty acids, generally found in fatty fish and seafood.
• Limiting simple sugar intake and increasing complex carbohydrates, such as legumes, whole grains and vegetables.
Dr. Michael Wald, nutrition and longevity director at Integrated Medicine of Mount Kisco, says that a diet high in Omega-3 fatty acids is associated with a significant reduction in the risk for developing many diseases, including Alzheimer’s.
“One should not expect that eating just walnuts would reduce one’s risk of developing dementia,” says Wald, who advises his patients to take Omega-3 supplements in addition to following a well-rounded diet rich in Omega-3 fatty acids.
