Some good news for people who like their grapes in a nonalcoholic format (possible subscription wall):
Toasting with grape juice may carry brain-sparing benefits, according to research presented here 24 February at the World Parkinson’s Congress. In a series of cognitive and motor tests, grape juice-drinking rats outshined their placebo-swilling counterparts, possibly due to an enhanced release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain.
…[R]esearchers fed the rodents a diet consisting exclusively of either grape juice (10% or 50%, diluted with water) or a calorie- and flavor-matched placebo. After six weeks, the team tested the rats for motor skills such as balance, stamina, and strength. Rats on the 50% juice diet outperformed those on either the 10% juice diet or the placebo diet; they were able to hang onto a wire for an average 2 seconds longer than the others, for example.
In cognitive tests and measures of dopamine release, however, the rats on the 10% juice diet started to shine. They learned to navigate a water maze (what’s that?) about 20 seconds faster after a trial run, compared to improvements of only 3 or 4 seconds in the other groups. They also had a 60% higher release of dopamine, compared to no change in rats on the other two diets. The release of neurotransmitters like dopamine is compromised in aging brains, says Joseph, who will also report his findings next month in Nutrition, so polyphenols and other chemicals in grape juice may help spark new communication between older brain cells. Joseph says further experiments will be needed to determine why relatively high concentrations of juice are better for some tasks than others.
Wine and dark Concord grape juice already offer advantages from a class of antioxidants called polyphenols, read what the pros say here or check here for our write-up. It’s always cool to see another health benefit from something that we already enjoy.