It is said that you are what you eat. In the last one year, it became evident that following a healthy diet is not only prudent, but it is also recommended if one is interested in boosting their immunity. In the pandemic, elderly health and immunity has been discussed a lot, and now a recent study has found that elderly people who are tea lovers and drink more than five cups a day, may experience significant cognitive benefits.
According to a report in The National people over the age of 85 also showed better accuracy and reaction speed, which could help with many daily activities like driving and completing jigsaws.
Dr Edward Okello, who led the Human Nutrition Research Centre project at Newcastle University, was quoted as saying: “The skills we see maintained in this group of the very old may not only be due to the compounds present in tea but may also be due to the rituals of making a pot of tea or sharing a chat over a cup of tea.”
For the research, data from the Newcastle 85+ study, involving more than 1,000 85-year-olds from Newcastle and North Tyneside, was used. The study was started in 2006, and it is continuing till date, with about 200 participants as they become centenarians.
During the research, nurses gather information from participants by visiting their homes to complete a health assessment with questionnaires, measurements, function tests and a fasting blood test. Their goal is to look for evidence that drinking black tea protects against memory loss.
The research results have shown more tea-drinking can significantly improve attention span, along with the ability to perform complex tasks (psychomotor speed). There has been, however, no association found between drinking tea and overall memory function; neither a correlation between tea and execution of simple speed tasks.
Researchers have also suggested in the findings that black tea should be considered for old people in any diet which aims to improve attention and psychomotor speed.
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