Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine in Mount Sinai (New York) conducted a study on genetically modified mice with Alzheimer’s disease. The authors of the study published in the medical journal Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease analyzed the impact of three forms of cocoa (natural, alkalized and “lavado”) on the disease and brain synapses. Cocoa “washbasin” is a specific preparation based on cocoa washed and fermented for two days.
Cocoa “lavado” protects the brain from Alzheimer’s disease
Cocoa ‘lavado’ extract is mainly made up of polyphenols, antioxidants that prevent beta-amyloid proteins from clumping together in the brain It may help reduce the damage caused by the disease, even before the first symptoms appear appear. Indeed, the results of the study revealed that only “lavado” cocoa showed real effectiveness in protecting brain synapses. It prevented proteins from forming plaques in the brain and slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Since it is believed that cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s diseasestarts years before the onset of symptoms, we believe that our results have very broad implications in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia,” says Dr. Giulio Maria Pasinetti, principal investigator of the study.
If the results of this study are encouraging, researchers still need to carry out other studies to succeed in creating food supplements based on “lavado” cocoa. This would make it possible to prevent the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease at a lower cost and even to slow down its development.
In France, more than 850,000 people are affected by the disease ofAlzheimer’sand nearly 225,000 new cases are diagnosed per year and the number of patients is expected to reach two million in 2020.
