Are You Eating Enough Purple Food?
“Absent Mindedness” or a ‘Senior Moment” is something that tends to happen more as we age. This is thought to be due to our brain shrinking. It is believed that our brain shrinks about 5% a decade after 40 and lots of people’s brains have shrunk by 20% by their seventies. It affects ones reasoning and emotions.
Genes play a part but it is now thought that upbringing and lifestyle have a bigger impact on our brain health – approximately 75%.
In Okinawa, in Japan there are many people who live a long time and the incidence of dementia is very low coupled with a low rate of cardio-vascular disease. One of the reasons put forward is that there is a respect for older people in Japan and it is written into Japanese law. In countries where it is enshrined in law to respect the elderly, there is a higher percentage of people living longer.
Purple sweet potato is a vegetable greatly consumed by people in Okinawa, they even buy purple sweet potato ice cream. Research is being carried out and they believe that this purple food is contributing to this longevity. The purple sweet potato helps maintain healthy blood vessels. It helps the blood vessels stay healthy, supple and strong. There is an 80% reduced chance of getting dementia and heart disease in Okinawa and they believe it is due to the purple sweet potato.
In a study in England it was found that purple sweet potato contains anthocyanin which gives the plant the purple colour. Anthocyanins are in the pigment of some plants and this anthocyanin helps provide oxygen and blood flow to the brain.
Purple sweet potato is difficult to get in this country but there are other foods which contain Anthocyanin.
The following contain anthocyanin by mg per 100g:
Blackcurrants – 592
Blueberries – 161
Blackberries – 173
Aubergines – 86
Red Cabbage – 40
Purple Sweet Potato – 53
As you can see the highest anthocyanin is in fruit but because one consumes larger portions of vegetables then the intake is high if you eat them.
Happy purple eating!
Reference: “How To Stay Young” BBC tv
