Cognitive and Memory Preservation

The ability to think and remember are essential to life. Reasoning helps us to make the many decisions we face each day, and memory helps us both function (language, names, faces, etc.) and preserve meaningful events in our lives. If the degeneration of these abilities is the curse of aging, natural products may well be the antidote, as numerous nutrients, herbs and specialty ingredients are proving beneficial to cognitive function.

In many ways, the brain controls everything in the body, including operational functions such as heart rate and muscle contraction. However, its role in cognitive processes is its most recognizable activity, often simplified as the ability to think and organize thoughts. Perception, reasoning, problem-solving, learning and remembering all owe their abstract activities to billions of nerves, bundled for maximum performance.

Brain cells are the heart of the neuron and connect to their surroundings via dendrites and axons. Axons carry electrochemical nerve impulses/messages and are often covered in myelin, a fatty sheath that aids nerve transmissions. Neurotransmitters, including glutamic acid and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), are chemical hormones that help deliver these messages.

There are numerous threats to the structures and function of the complex brain. The organ is mostly water and fat, yet operates at mysterious proficiency, given its primary components typically don't mix well. However, with fat the major nutrient in the brain, oxidation becomes cerebral enemy number one.

Oxidation Equals Aging

As described by a research team at University of Kentucky, Lexington, significantly increased levels of lipid peroxidation and protein, DNA and RNA oxidation have been found in vulnerable regions of the brain of both early- and late-stage patients suffering cognitive impairment.¹ In fact, this oxidation has been linked to progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the granddaddy of cognitive degeneration.

This pathology opens the door for antioxidant supplementation. Researchers have reported an antioxidant-rich diet may counteract oxidative damage and decreased motor and cognitive performance linked to increased risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), AD and fellow degenerative condition Parkinson's disease(PD).²

This has borne true, as research has linked low peripheral levels of various antioxidant nutrients—vitamins C, A and E and carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene)—to cognitive impairment.³ Of this group, vitamin E has shown particular efficacy against cognitive disorder related to oxidation. Nano-sized alpha-tocotrienol may cross the blood-brain barrier to protect the brain.⁴

The vitamin-esque nutrient coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is another protective antioxidant, addressing free radicals produced during oxidative phosphorylation in the inner mitochondrial membrane.⁵ Complicating the aging process in the brain, CoQ10 levels decline with age, potentially contributing to beta-amyloid deposits, which disrupts signal transmission by synaptic receptors and leads to decreased learning and memory functions. Intervention with CoQ10 appears to limit amyloid beta peptide toxicity in brain cells;⁶ co-supplementation with vitamin E has shown promise in improving cognitive performance.⁷

Beyond nutrients, botanical antioxidants might be useful in preserving brain function. From the herb turmeric comes curcumin, or curcuminoids, which offers both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties important to cognition. An extract of curcumin has inhibited neurological oxidative stress in animal models,⁸ and also appears to help hinder beta amyloid formation and progression.⁹

Also from the botanical world, pine bark extract has brought its powerful antioxidant hammer down on free radicals, improving cognitive function as well as related issues such as circulation and vascular function. In 2008, two different extracts of pine bark made inroads on memory capability in aging people. Maritime pine bark extract from France (as Pycnogenol, from Horphag) addressed the oxidation theory of aging and neurological degeneration by significantly inhibiting the oxidation of nerve membranes and improving memory after three months of supplementation in elderly patients.¹⁰ Previously, this extract was found to improve attention, concentration and motor-visual coordination in attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD).¹¹

Similarly, New Zealand pine bark extract (as Enzogneol, from ENZO Nutraceuticals) improved cognitive performance in middle-age men after only five weeks of supplementation.¹² Computer-based cognitive testing showed rapid improvements in performance on both spatial working memory (SWM) and immediate recognition memory (IRM) tasks. Researchers noted performance on these tests normally declines with age, while the Enzogneol group's results indicated a far younger performance than their age range would have normally predicted. Follow-up worked revealed the extract seemed to improve the way different brain regions interacted or talked to each other, possibly explaining the performance increase on the cognitive tasks.

Overall, the researchers suggested the antioxidant effects and improvements in blood circulation may have driven the test results. The researchers left open the possibility that some phenolic constituents or metabolites entering the brain may directly influence nervous signal transduction.