A recent research carried out in Italy by the (IBCN); Institute of Cellular Biology and Neurobiology reveled that a natural extract made from olive polyphenols, a powerful antioxidant active in olives, could potentially have a positive impact in learning and memory.
The IBCN’s research paper was published in The Journal Nutrition, and it shows that olive polyphenols increase levels of the proteins ‘neurotrophins’ and ‘neurotrophic factors’ Neurotrophins are a family of proteins that induce the survival, development, and function of neurons; And Neurotrophic factors are a family of proteins that are responsible for the growth and survival of developing neurons and maintenance of mature neurons.
The Experiment was carried out over 10 days by providing subjects with olive extract obtained from olive pomace; Olive pomace oil is the oil that is extracted from the olive pulp after the first press. The researches stablished a substantial increase in the level of neurotrophins’ and ‘neurotrophic factors’ among the subjects studied. Of course, more research in this area has to be done, however, this research by IBCN concludes clearly that olive polyphenols could play a crucial role helping in human memory process.
