Exceptionally useful knowledge came to us on the eve of the New Year holidays. Moderate consumption of sparkling wine not only does not harm our mental abilities, but, on the contrary, noticeably strengthens them.
Every year towards the end of December, the ageless joke gains popularity again and again: “How did you meet the New Year? “I don’t know, they haven’t told me yet.” But, as it turns out, the way not to be in the role of his hero is extremely simple and is directly related to the main attribute of the New Year’s feast. We are, of course, talking about champagne.
A group of microbiologists from the Department of Nutrition and Nutritional Research at the University of Reading presented data from experiments that convincingly prove that moderate consumption of champagne does not deprive us of memory, but strengthens it.
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In his article published in the prestigious journal Antioxidants and Redox Signaling1, the authors report that phenols, organic compounds found in champagne, actively interact with many groups of proteins in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex involved in information storage processes. Their role is especially great in the functioning of our spatial memory — the ability to navigate in space and remember the location of objects, people and physical stimuli. With age, these proteins die off, and their activity decreases. As it turned out, phenols are able to effectively prevent these processes.
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Professor of the University of Reading Jeremy Spencer, commenting on the work of colleagues, notes that similar effects have been found before, but so far scientists have associated them with the effects of other substances — flavonoids contained, in particular, in red wine. However, champagne wines are not rich in flavonoids at all and nevertheless show a stable positive effect on the cognitive functions of the brain. Thus, it is the phenols that are to be credited for this effect.
This allows us to consider the regular use of champagne as a preventive procedure that can prevent the development of age-related memory and cognitive impairments — and, in particular, dementia. Considering that earlier researchers at the University of Reading have already proven that drinking champagne has a positive effect on the functioning of the heart and blood circulation, reducing the risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular diseases, then sparkling wines seem to be something like an elixir of health. However, scientists would not be scientists if they had not added a fly in the ointment to this barrel of honey. They emphasize that we are talking exclusively about the moderate use of champagne. From their point of view, 2-3 glasses of sparkling wine a week are more than enough for the prevention of dementia and cardiovascular diseases.
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One of the authors of the study, microbiologist David Vauzour, adds that the results of the experiments suggest that not only champagne, but also other foods rich in phenols can have a positive effect on memory and cognitive abilities. Among them, for example, blueberries, blueberries and cocoa beans. Really, it’s a pity that it’s not Olivier salad — otherwise the New Year’s party could rightfully be considered the epitome of a healthy lifestyle. However, chocolate with champagne as an effective means of preventing dementia is also, perhaps, not a bad idea at all.
1 http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ars.2012.5142