The latest tool in the fight against Alzheimer’s might be a cup of tea and a slice of carrot cake. Researchers at the University of Southern California and colleagues elsewhere recently found that compounds in green tea and carrots reversed Alzheimer’s symptoms in mice.
“You don’t have to wait 10 to 12 years for a designer drug to make it to market; you can make these dietary changes today,” said Terrence Town, Ph.D., a professor at USC’s Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute and senior author of the study. “I find that very encouraging.”
Town and colleagues focused on two compounds: epigallocatechin-3-gallate and ferulic acid. EGCG is found mostly in green tea, while FA is found in carrots.
They discovered the compounds help prevent proteins from forming clumps on the brain and causing cognitive decline. Full findings appear in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
