New! Sign up for our free email newsletter.
Science News
from research organizations

Get Smart About What You Eat And You Might Actually Improve Your Intelligence

Date:
July 3, 2008
Source:
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
Summary:
New research findings provide more evidence that if we get smart about what we eat, our intelligence can improve. According to scientists, dietary nutrients found in a wide range of foods from infant formula to eggs increase brain synapses and improve cognitive abilities.
Share:
FULL STORY

New research findings published online in The FASEB Journal provide more evidence that if we get smart about what we eat, our intelligence can improve. According to MIT scientists, dietary nutrients found in a wide range of foods from infant formula to eggs increase brain synapses and improve cognitive abilities.

"I hope human brains will, like those of experimental animals, respond to this kind of treatment by making more brain synapses and thus restoring cognitive abilities," said Richard Wurtman, MD, senior researcher on the project.

In the study, gerbils were given various combinations of three compounds needed for healthy brain membranes: choline, found in eggs; uridine monophosphate (UMP) found in beets; and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), found in fish oils. Other gerbils were given none of these to serve as a baseline. Then they were checked for cognitive changes four weeks later.

The scientists found that the gerbils given choline with UMP and/or DHA showed cognitive improvements in tasks thought to be relevant to gerbils, such as navigating mazes. After these tests were concluded, the researchers dissected the mouse brains for a biological cause for the improvement. They found biochemical evidence that there was more than the usual amount of brain synapse activity, which was consistent with behaviors indicating higher intelligence.

"Now that we know how to make gerbils smarter," said Gerald Weissmann, MD, Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal, "it's not too far a stretch to hope that people's intelligence can also be improved. Quite frankly, this can't happen soon enough, as every environmentalist, advocate of evolution and war opponent will attest."


Story Source:

Materials provided by Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. Sarah Holguin, Joseph Martinez, Camille Chow, and Richard Wurtman. Dietary uridine enhances the improvement in learning and memory produced by administering DHA to gerbils. FASEB Journal, July 7, 2008 DOI: 10.1096/fj.08-112425

Cite This Page:

Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. "Get Smart About What You Eat And You Might Actually Improve Your Intelligence." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 3 July 2008. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080702150706.htm>.
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. (2008, July 3). Get Smart About What You Eat And You Might Actually Improve Your Intelligence. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 10, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080702150706.htm
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. "Get Smart About What You Eat And You Might Actually Improve Your Intelligence." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080702150706.htm (accessed December 10, 2024).

Explore More

from ScienceDaily

RELATED STORIES