Resveratrol improved cognitive processing speed and increased blood flow to the brain in the elderly.
Resveratrol-specifically, resveratrol from the Reserveage Organics supplements brand-improved cognitive processing speed and increased blood flow to the brain in the elderly, according to study results presented at the 65th annual Scientific Meeting of The Gerontological Society of America in November.
The Resveratrol for Improved Performance in Elders (RIPE) trial is a pilot study conducted by University of Florida researchers, with a double-blind, placebo-controlled design. “Cognitively intact” men and women were give oral supplements of Reserveage Organics resveratrol in either 300 mg/day or 1000 mg/day doses over a 90-day period. Cognitive assessments were performed at baseline and at the end of the study, on day 90, using the following: the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test, Digits Forward and Backward, Controlled Oral Word Association, Trail Making Tests, Digit Symbol Copy number, and Digit Symbol Substitution Test.
Compared to placebo, subjects who took the 1000 mg/day resveratrol dose saw improvement in psychomotor (processing) speed and significantly increased hippocampal activation (increased blood flow to the brain).
“Our findings are supportive of a short-term course of resveratrol supplementation for enhancing psychomotor speed and increasing hippocampal activation. We also observed exciting trends suggesting memory was improved,” said lead researcher Steve Anton, PhD, from the University of Florida’s Department of Aging and Geriatric Research and Institute on Aging. “The results are very promising and show that resveratrol may have a predictable positive impact on cognitive function in older adults.”