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Found It: A Fruit That Supports Brain Health & Emotional Well-Being

Hannah Frye
Author:
November 26, 2023
Hannah Frye
Assistant Beauty & Health Editor
By Hannah Frye
Assistant Beauty & Health Editor
Hannah Frye is the Assistant Beauty Editor at mindbodygreen. She has a B.S. in journalism and a minor in women’s, gender, and queer studies from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Hannah has written across lifestyle sections including health, wellness, sustainability, personal development, and more.
Overhead Photo of Fresh Raw Ingredients
Image by Toma Evsuvdo / Stocksy
November 26, 2023

If you could do something right now to improve your brainpower, would you? Well, researchers have been investigating this topic for quite some time, with new and exciting findings surfacing every day. Most recently, scientists have deemed one fruit particularly beneficial for supporting cognition skills. 

The brain health benefits of strawberries

According to a recent study published in the journal Nutrients, eating a serving of strawberries a day may improve cognitive control and emotional coping capabilities1.

The participants were 30 men and women between the ages of 50 and 65 with a BMI of 25 or greater who complained of mild cognitive decline. For the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, participants consumed either a strawberry powder (made from freeze-dried strawberries) or a placebo powder that, like strawberries, contained fiber and carbs (but didn't have the fruit's polyphenols) daily for one week. The strawberry powder group consumed the equivalent of one cup of whole fresh strawberries per day—a standard serving.

Before and after this intervention, researchers tested participants' executive abilities, learning, and memory—which all tend to decline with dementia and other forms of neurodegeneration. They also gathered information about the participants' mood, depressive symptoms, and feelings of hopelessness.

Indeed, the results show that those who ate the strawberry powder scored better on learning and memory tests at the end of the study than the control group. They also reported a lower level of depressive symptoms than they did at the study's start. Researchers suspect this may have been a ripple effect from the cognitive benefits.

“Such coping enhancement also can be understood as implying improved executive ability; that is, better ability to manage everyday activities and social relationships and improved response control and greater flexibility,” they note. 

The controlled element of this study helps ensure these benefits were from the strawberries themselves—not their fiber or carbs.

While the results are impressive for the small but mighty berry, we still have more to learn about their specific brain-beneficial components.

The authors suspect the anti-inflammatory action of the flavonoids found in the strawberry powder (and whole strawberries) was the primary factor at play, but more studies are needed to confirm this finding. Nevertheless, this new research joins previous studies that have uncovered impressive health benefits of strawberries. Consuming the fruit has been shown to have a positive effect on systolic blood pressure too, for example.

To say the least, it’s worth viewing strawberries as more than just a sweet treat—they can be considered brain food.

Rather than utilizing strawberry powder in your daily routine, opt for the full fruit. When doing so, you’ll reap the benefits of additional fiber to support gut health, blood sugar, and more—find more fiber benefits here

More brain-boosting foods

So add strawberries to your menu, but don’t forget that brain-boosting foods come in many different shapes and sizes. Here are a few of our favorites to add to your next grocery list:

  • Walnuts
  • Broccoli
  • Avocado
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Spinach
  • Blueberries

The takeaway

A new study found that one daily serving of strawberries can improve cognitive control and emotional coping capabilities in some people. While more research is needed to confirm the mechanism, authors suggest the anti-inflammatory effects of strawberries may be brain-boosting. Want to learn more about eating for your noggin? Start here with the MIND Diet

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