The chocolate treat found to improve your memory as soon as you’ve eaten it
Human memory is known to be unstable. It’s prone to bias, it’s hopelessly reliant on emotional triggers, it’s often patently wrong, and we could all benefit from a little more of it.
Scientists now say there is compelling evidence to suggest dark chocolate may be more than just a guilty pleasure, and may actually sharpen memory and boost our brainpower.
Studies in mice found that flavanols, bitter compounds found abundantly in dark chocolate, red wine and berries, improved cognitive function about an hour after ingestion.
Mice given flavanols an hour before the memory challenge were about 30 percent better at detecting novel objects compared to a control group given water only.
The sharp, bitter notes in cocoa can trigger a well-timed noradrenaline rush in the hippocampus, the part of the brain that transforms short-term memories into long-term memories, a research team from Japan’s Shibaura Institute of Technology said.
Flavanols have already been associated with improved memory and cognition, as well as protection against neuronal damage.
The study was published on: Current Research It helps explain why previous larger trials in Food Science reported improved memory in adults who used these compounds regularly.
Flavanols give the body’s stress response system a subtle stimulus at just the right time, appearing to be a sort of biochemical cue card for the brain, the team said.
Research initially focused on the poor bioavailability of flavanols; After ingestion, only a small amount actually enters the bloodstream. The team sought to close this knowledge gap: How can flavanols affect brain function and the nervous system when they are so poorly absorbed?
The study tested the hypothesis that the astringent taste of flavanols may act as a direct signal to the brain.
Chief investigator Dr. Yasuyuki Fujii said: “Flavanols exhibit an astringent taste. We hypothesized that this taste acts as a stimulant that transmits signals directly to the central nervous system. Consequently, flavanol stimulation is thought to be transmitted via sensory nerves to activate the brain, which then triggers physiological responses in the periphery via the sympathetic nervous system.”
In behavioral tests, the team found that flavanol-fed mice “exhibited greater motor activity, exploratory behavior, and improved learning and memory compared to controls.”
Dr Fuji added: “These results suggest that flavanol intake may trigger broad physiological responses similar to those triggered by exercise, acting as a moderate stressor that activates the central nervous system and increases attention, arousal and memory.
“The stress responses elicited by flavanols in this study are similar to those elicited by physical exercise. Therefore, despite their poor bioavailability, moderate intake of flavanols may improve health and quality of life.”
