If you drink tea, then you’ll be glad to know that new research by Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at NUS suggests that drinking it regularly will lead to a better organised brain.
The research team found that individuals who consumed either green tea, oolong tea, or black tea at least four times a week for about 25 years had brain regions that were connected in a more efficient way. Drinking tea regularly has a protective effect against age-related decline in brain organisation, meaning that information processing in the brain can be performed more efficiently.
The research, carried out between 2015 and 2018, was based on 36 adults aged 60 and above, who had to undergo neuropsychological tests and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Data about their health, lifestyle, and psychological well-being were also gathered.
The results of a 2017 study also showed that daily consumption can reduce the risk of cognitive decline by 50% in older persons. This is in addition to past studies demonstrating that tea intake improves mood and prevents cardiovascular disease.
Of course, more research needs to be done to better understand how our memory works, and possibly preserve cognition during the aging process.
For now, it’s safe to assume that regular tea drinkers have better cognitive function compared to non-tea drinkers.
The research appears in the journal Aging. Additional researchers from the University of Essex and University of Cambridge contributed to the work.
