WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A study published in the journal Microbiome found that older people who ate more virgin olive oil tended to have better brain health. However, people who ate more 'common olive oil,' which includes refined olive oil and olive-pomace oil, showed a faster decline in some thinking skills.
The study followed 656 people aged between 55 and 75 years old for two years, who were a part of a larger study in Spain. All of them were overweight or had obesity and had health problems such as high blood pressure and high blood sugar. None had dementia or serious memory problems when the study started.
At the beginning of the study, the participants answered questions about what they ate. They also gave stool samples so researchers could study their gut bacteria. They then took tests to check their memory, attention, language, planning and problem-solving skills. The same tests were repeated two years later.
The study found that people who consumed more virgin olive oil had a greater variety of gut bacteria, which is generally considered a sign of a healthier gut. Meanwhile, people who ate more common olive oil had less variety of gut bacteria.
Researchers also identified certain types of gut bacteria that differed depending on the type of olive oil consumed. They believed that one type, called Adlercreutzia, may partly explain the link between virgin olive oil and better overall cognitive function, as it could account for about 20 percent of the association.
Overall, people who consumed more virgin olive oil tended to have better results in several brain-function tests. However, the study found a link between the two and does not prove that virgin olive oil directly prevents memory or thinking problems.
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