memory

DHA, a member of the omega-3 fatty acid family, is one of nature’s most critical nutrients, playing an essential role in every stage of life. DHA makes up 97 percent of the fatty acids found in the brain and 93 percent in the retina.

Turns out that feel-good hormone dopamine (you experience it when pleased or motivated) can help out your sluggish memory as you age. Researchers have found that dopamine specifically affects episodic memory. This is the part of long-term memory that allows us to recall actual events, and happens to be the first part of the memory affected in Alzheimer’s dementia.

Açai fruit fed to aged rats reversed age-related cognitive and motor declines, according to a study from Tufts University. The study fed old rats diets that included two percent of one of two açai species, Euterpe oleracea, found mostly along the Amazon river near its mouth, and Euterpe precatoria, found in Bolivia.

Want to protect yourself against age-related degenerative disease? Try having a morning or afternoon cup of green tea.

Already touted around the world for its cardiovascular benefits, emerging evidence claims the chemical properties of green tea can impact cellular mechanisms in the brain as well.