提高思維的食物
Blackberries
黑莓Whether it's a new dance or a foreign language, the older you get the harder it is to learn new things. The reason? In order to process new information our brain cells need to "talk" to each another. Yet, as we age those cells become inflamed making it harder for them to communicate with one another. Blackberries can get the conversation flowing again. They provide potent antioxidants known as polyphenols that zap inflammation and encourage communication between neurons, improving our ability to soak up new information according to a 2009 Tufts University study.
不論是新的舞種還是一門外語，年齡越大，學習新事物就越困難。爲什麼？爲了處理新信息，我們的腦細胞需要相互"交流"。但是，隨着年齡增長，這些細胞會發炎，彼此之間難以溝通。黑莓有助於這些細胞再次對話。2009年塔夫茨大學的一項研究表明：黑莓提供有效抗氧化劑，即多酚，能消除炎症、促進神經元之間的交流、提高我們接受新信息的能力。Coffee
咖啡
If you're trying to kick your habit you might want to reconsider. A recent Finnish study of 1,400 longtime coffee drinkers reveals that people who sipped between three to five cups of coffee a day in their 40s and 50s reduced their odds of developing Alzheimer's disease by 65% compared to those who downed fewer than two cups a day. Researchers believe that coffee's caffeine and ample antioxidants are the keys to its protective affects.
如果你正在努力戒掉這一習慣，請三思而行。近來，芬蘭的一項研究對1400名長期喝咖啡的人做了調查，研究揭示：40歲至50歲的人中，與每天喝少於兩杯咖啡的人相比，每天喝3至5杯咖啡的人患阿爾茨海默症的機率降低了65%。研究員認爲，咖啡中的咖啡因和充足的抗氧化劑起到了關鍵的保護作用。
Apples
蘋果Here's a new reason to munch on an apple a day: Apples are a leading source of quercetin, an antioxidant plant chemical that keeps your mental juices flowing by protecting your brain cells. According to researchers at Cornell University, quercetin defends your brain cells from free radical attacks which can damage the outer lining of delicate neurons and eventually lead to cognitive decline.
每天吃蘋果的理由又多了一個：蘋果是槲皮素的主要來源，這是一種通過保護腦細胞來保持大腦運作的抗氧化植物化學物。據康奈爾大學的研究員所述，槲皮素保護腦細胞免受自由基的傷害，這種傷害會破壞脆弱神經元的外層，最終導致認知能力下降。Chocolate
巧克力You've heard the good news that chocolate can lower your blood pressure. Now researchers have discovered it can also keep your mind sharp. A 2009 Journal of Nutrition study found that eating as little as one-third of an ounce of chocolate a day (the size of about two Hershey's kisses) helps protect against age-related memory loss. They credit polyphenols in cocoa with increasing blood flow to the brain.
你已經知道巧克力能降低血壓。現在研究員還發現，巧克力能保持頭腦清醒。2009年發表於《營養學雜誌》的一篇研究發現：每天只吃三分之一盎司的巧克力（好時kiss系列2顆）有助於預防與年齡相關的記憶衰退。這得歸功於可可中的多酚，能增加進入大腦的血流量。Cinnamon
肉桂Beta-amyloid plaques are one of the trademarks of Alzheimer's disease. The other is tangles in the brain made of tau proteins that can cause brain cells to die. Emerging research from the University of California at Santa Barbara reveals that two compounds in cinnamon - proanthocyanidins and cinnamaldehyde - may inactivate these tau proteins.
β-澱粉樣蛋白斑是阿爾茨海默症的標誌之一。加州大學聖巴巴拉分校的研究興起，表明肉桂中的兩種化合物--原花青素和肉桂醛--或能使這些tau蛋白失活。
