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Study: Compound Found In Beer Boosts Brain Function

An anonymous reader writes Researchers have found that a chemical found in hops may actually improve memory. Unfortunately, a person would need to drink 3,520 pints of beer a day to get a high enough dose of the chemical to boost their brain power. A daunting task for even the most enthusiastic Oktoberfest participant. From the article: "Researchers at Oregon State University discovered that doses of xanthohumol, a flavonoid found in hops, improved memory and thinking in a lucky group of mice. Flavonoids are a class of compounds present in plants, known to have numerous health benefits. Last year, researchers discovered that a flavonoid found in celery and artichokes could potentially fight pancreatic cancer. The researchers treated the mice with dietary supplements of xanthohumol over the course of eight weeks. Their goal was to determine if xanthohumol could affect palmitoylation, a naturally occurring process in animals (including humans) that's associated with memory degradation. The mice then went through a series of tests—including the popular Morris water maze—to gauge whether or not the treatments had improved their spatial memory and cognitive flexibility. For the younger mice in the group, it worked. But on the older mice, unfortunately, the xanthohumol didn't seem to have any effect."

2 of 119 comments (clear)

  1. Drink IPA by Zeio · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I drink Pliny the Elder every Thursday @ 11 am at a bar locally here that taps just ONE KEG and this keg lasts about 1 Hour. 30-50 pitchers of beer.

    Micro-bubbles in the brew.

    Pliny is nice. Its balanced, lots of hops, IPA classic, only good fresh, and its smooth

    Hops are really awesome. They are brain food. Also brewers yeast is able to even control blood pressure.

    I love beer.

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    Legalize the constitution. Think for yourself question authority.
  2. Re:Obliagtory by binarylarry · · Score: 1, Interesting
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    Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!