A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that drinking orange juice daily can improve brain power in older adults. According to a foreign study, memory, verbal fluency and brain reaction time improved by nearly 8 percent in less than 2 months. Scientists attribute the results to the intake of chemicals called “flavonoids. Flavonoids are a naturally occurring compound that is abundant in citrus fruits. Previous studies have focused on the potential effects of flavonoids, and this study is the first to look at the effects of flavonoids in fruit. Flavonoids can improve memory by stimulating signaling pathways in the hippocampus of the human brain, the part of the brain associated with learning memory and storing information. A team of researchers at the University of Reading, UK, treated 37 healthy volunteers to drink 500ml (about 2 cups) of orange juice daily for 8 weeks. These subjects were 13 male and 24 female, with an age range of 60 to 81 years. At the end of the experiment, the subjects all showed significant improvements in brain function. The researchers measured memory, brain reaction time and verbal fluency before and after the experiment and gave separate scores, and finally scored a total score, which showed that their scores improved by an average of 8 percent over the course of nearly 2 months, a very significant improvement. The researchers said they may not recommend that everyone drink 500ml of orange juice every day, but adding a certain amount of orange juice to the daily diet can improve brain health, saving money and convenience. Daniel, lead author of the study, a researcher at the University of Reading. Professor Lamport said: “The global population is rapidly aging. It is estimated that by 2100, the number of people over the age of 60 may increase twofold. Therefore, it is important to find simple and easy ways to improve cognitive function in the elderly.” Many vegetables and fruits or beverages such as cocoa, tea and red wine now contain flavonoids, but citrus contains flavanols, a type of flavonoid that is very beneficial to the body because it is “very beneficial for absorption.” For those elderly people who are not satisfied with their current intellectual condition, they may also try to add some orange juice to their recipes, but of course, if they have serious ulcer disease or excessive stomach acid, do not force to try, because tea and red wine also have similar effects.