This research tested whether supplementation of resveratrol would enhance memory
performance in older adults (Witte AV, et.al., 2014).
The participants were 23 healthy overweight females and males 50-75 years old which were
matched to 23 participants given a placebo.
The study went on for 26 weeks, and the dose of resveratrol used was 200 mg per day.
At the beginning and at the end of the study period, the participants underwent memory tasks
and neuroimaging to assess volume, microstructure, and functional connectivity of the
hippocampus, a key region implicated in memory functions.
Glucose, lipid metabolism, inflammation, neurotrophic factors, and vascular parameters were
also evaluated.
The researchers reported a significant effect from taking resveratrol on retention of words over
30 min compared with the placebo.
In addition, resveratrol led to significant increases in hippocampal functional connectivity,
decreases in glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and body fat, and increases in leptin when
compared with the placebo.
HbA1c is a measurement of long term glucose control, and leptin is a hormone that regulates
appetite. An increase in leptin will usually make you less hungry.
To both see an improvement in memory and glucose metabolism just from taking
resveratrol is very interesting.
Reference:
Witte AV1, Kerti L2, Margulies DS3, Flöel A, Effects of resveratrol on memory performance,
hippocampal functional connectivity, and glucose metabolism in healthy older adults.J Neurosci.
2014 Jun 4;34(23):7862-70.