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Can these
results be extended to humans? We don't know yet. But the study
is notable for having linked an antioxidant-rich diet directly
to a memory-related task-namely, eye blink conditioning.
Rats fed on the antioxidant diet were quicker to learn that
hearing a certain sound was always followed by a gentle puff
of air in one eye. In response, rats shut one eye in anticipation
of the puff-a conditioned response that requires memory. Previous
studies showed that antioxidants have potentially beneficial
effects on individual brain cells. The new work extends the
connection from brain cells to brain function
In theory, antioxidants may counteract the effects of aging
by neutralizing free
radicals, which are molecules in the body that readily react
with others. Produced as a normal part of metabolism,
free radicals can damage cell membranes and cause other mischief
thought to be part of the aging process. Oxidation, for example,
may play a role in the progression of Alzheimer's
disease. By defanging free radicals, antioxidants may have
an anti-aging effect in the brain.
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