Adding just one gram of turmeric to
breakfast could help improve the memory of people who are in the very early
stages of diabetes and at risk of cognitive impairment.
The finding has particular significance
given that the world’s ageing population means a rising incidence of conditions
that predispose people to diabetes, which in turn is connected to dementia.
Early intervention could help to reduce the
burden, whether by halting the disease or reducing its impact, said Emeritus
Professor Mark Wahlqvist, from the Monash Asia Institute at
Monash University.
Professor Wahlqvist recently led a study in
Taiwan that tested the working memory of men and women aged 60 or older who had
recently been diagnosed with untreated pre-diabetes.
“Working memory is widely thought to be one
of the most important mental faculties, critical for cognitive abilities such
as planning, problem solving and reasoning,” he said.
“Assessment of working memory is simple and
convenient, but it is also very useful in the appraisal of cognition and in
predicting future impairment and dementia.”
In the placebo-controlled study, subjects
were given one gram of turmeric with an otherwise nutritionally bland breakfast
of white bread. Their working memory was tested before and some hours after the
meal.
“We found that this modest addition to
breakfast improved working memory over six hours in older people with
pre-diabetes,” Professor Wahlqvist said.
Turmeric is widely used in cooking,
particularly in Asia. Its characteristic yellow colour is due to curcumin,
which accounts for 3 to 6 per cent of turmeric and has been shown by
experimental studies to reduce the risk of dementia.
“Our findings with turmeric are consistent
with these observations, insofar as they appear to influence cognitive function
where there is disordered energy metabolism and insulin resistance,” Professor
Wahlqvist said.
The study, which was published in the Asia Pacific Journal
of Clinical Nutrition, also involved a number of research
institutes in Taiwan.
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