Blueberry powder and brain activity in older adults with memory decline
What it found
Daily blueberry powder for 16 weeks increased brain activity during a memory task in older adults with mild memory problems.
The authors found no clear improvement in actual memory test scores.
What they found
Studies in people
Brain activity during memory tasks
After 16 weeks, people taking blueberry powder showed stronger brain signals in three areas on the left side of the brain during harder memory tasks. The placebo group showed a small drop in activity in one area.
Memory test performance
There was no clear difference between groups in how well they performed the memory task. The blueberry group showed a slight edge in accuracy that might reach significance with 17 people per group instead of eight.
Background diet stayed similar
Diet records showed both groups ate about the same amount of anthocyanins from other foods outside the study. This suggests participants followed instructions to avoid extra berries.
Other findings
Powder composition details
The daily blueberry dose equaled about 148 g of whole fruit, split into two packets taken with meals. The placebo matched the color, taste, and sugar content but contained no anthocyanins and no fiber.
What the authors conclude
- They say these results show for the first time that blueberry powder can increase brain activity during memory challenges in older adults with cognitive decline.
- Their findings match earlier research suggesting berry products may support brain function in people at risk for dementia.
- They suggest future studies should use larger groups and longer supplementation periods to see if memory performance also improves.
How it was done
Alzheimer's disease is expected to become much more common, and there is no effective treatment. People with mild memory loss have a higher risk of dementia, so the authors wanted to see if blueberries could help protect brain function in this group.
The researchers enrolled 21 older adults aged 68 to 92 who had mild memory problems. Participants took either freeze-dried whole blueberry powder or a matching placebo powder every day for 16 weeks. They used brain scans before and after to measure brain activity while participants did a working memory task.
What it can’t tell you
- With only eight people in each group, the trial may have been too small to detect real changes in memory test scores.
- Because obese people and those with certain implants were excluded, scientists do not yet know if the same brain effects would appear in those groups.
- The brain signal measured here depends partly on blood flow, so it cannot separate changes in nerve activity from changes in circulation.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by NIA NIH HHS (from the PubMed record).
- Authors work at
- University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, USA; b Atlantic Food and Horticultural Research Centre, Canada; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, USA
The paper
- Title
- Enhanced neural activation with blueberry supplementation in mild cognitive impairment
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Boespflug EL, Eliassen JC, Dudley JA, et al (2018). Enhanced neural activation with blueberry supplementation in mild cognitive impairment. Nutritional neuroscience. doi:10.1080/1028415X.2017.1287833Free full textPubMed 28221821DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error