Written by Marcia Egles, MD. In a study of 1092 Singapore residents, those using curry in their diet had an average mental performance score equal to those ten years younger and not using curry.
The yellow spice in curry has been used as a food and medicinal in India for centuries. Curcumin, the active component of the curry spice turmeric, has been shown to be a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent.(1,2) A study from researchers in Singapore gives evidence that curry eaten in the diet, even in small amounts, may offer some protection against Alzheimer’s disease and mental decline in the elderly. Prior studies in mice have shown a reduction of the amyloid plaque] in the brains of mice which were fed curcumin. (3) Amyloid plaque is a prominent abnormality found in the brains of people who have developed Alzheimer’s disease.
The Singapore study compared measurements of mental functioning in elderly subjects with the amount of curry in their diets. The study used information from the 2003-2004 Singapore Mental Health Survey. A random sample of 1,092 Singapore residents, aged 60-93, participated. Specially trained nurse interviewers collected detailed social, medical and dietary information and assessed each subject’s cognitive abilities using the standard “Mini-Mental State Exam”. (4)
The researchers reported a higher performance of mental function among those who included curry in their diets compared with those who never or rarely (less than every 6 months) ate curry. The magnitude of the difference in mental function between the two groups was reported to be equivalent to a “10-year age-incremental effect”. In other words, the average score for the mental performance of the group who ate less curry was what would have been expected if they were ten years older on average than the curry group.
Although the researchers sorted out other causes for the reported difference, they noted that these results should be considered “tentative” pending further study. They found no additional cognitive benefits among their subjects who reported the highest levels of curry consumption.
The prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease in India among the elderly between 70-79 years old is purportedly four-fold less than that of the United States. (5) Curry might be part of the reason for this difference.
Source: Skinner, Halcyon G., et al. “Vitamin D intake and the risk for pancreatic cancer in two cohort studies.” Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Biomarkers 15.9 (2006): 1688-1695.
© 2006 American Association for Cancer Research
Posted July 22, 2008.
References:
- Toda S. et al. Natural antioxidants. III. Antioxidative components isolated from rhizome of Curcuma longa L. Chem Pharm Bull 1985:33: 1725-8.
- Miquel J. et al. The Curcuma anti-oxidants: pharmacological effects and prospects for future clinical use. A review. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 2002:34: 37-46.
- Lim GP. et al. The curry spice curcumin reduces oxidative damage and amyloid pathology in an Alzheimer transgenic mouse. J. Neurosci 2001; 21:8370-7.
- Folstein MF. “Mini-mental state.” A practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. J Psychiatr Res 1975: 12: 189-98.
- Ganguli M et al. Apolipoprotein E polymorphism and Alzheimer disease: the Indo-US Cross-National Dementia Study. Arch Neurol 2000;57: 824-30.
