If you want to improve your memory or simply keep your memory powers sharp for as long as possible, then there is one drink in particular that you might want to add to your regular diet: a fermented milk drink.
If you’re curious, “fermented dairy products, such as yogurt, fermented milk, and fermented whey beverages” contain something called probiotic cultures, according to direct science. Both foods and drinks with probiotic cultures it can benefit the body in a number of ways, even apparently helping to prevent memory loss.
A recent study that appeared in Nutritional Neuroscience He looked at adults who were between the ages of 25 and 45 and asked them to regularly consume a “fermented dairy-based beverage.” Each drink contained “25 to 30 billion colony-forming units of live, active kefir cultures.”
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In the end, the researchers found that drinking a fermented milk beverage “increases[s] the presence of certain microorganisms in the intestine and improve[s] relational memory in healthy adults”.
“Not surprisingly, the study found that consumption of probiotic-containing fermented milk beverages had a positive impact on brain function, such as memory. Because of our gut-brain axis connection, our gut microbiome and the immune system nervous influence each other greatly. both positive and negative,” Paulina Lee, MS, RD, LD, functional dietitian and founder of Savvy Stummy, LLCsays Eat this, not that! “Our brain and gut have this way of communicating with each other and changes in the gut microbiome can affect the modulation of the gut-brain axis, which can result in behavioral and cognitive alterations.”
Often, when our gut has an imbalance of healthy gut bacteria, it can have negative effects on our brain health and mood, Lee also notes.
“An unbalanced gut can send signals to the brain just like a troubled brain can send signals to the gut,” says Lee. “When we eat probiotic and prebiotic foods, we add diversity to our microbiome to balance healthy gut bacteria to keep our guts and brains happy.”
If you want to add a fermented milk beverage to your diet, Lee says “you can drink between a half and a cup of kefir a day.” However, Lee adds that “drinking too much could have a number of side effects, including digestive problems. Therefore, it is best to enjoy kefir in moderation to combine with a healthy, balanced diet and mix it with other fermented foods, such as kombucha, kimchi, sauerkraut, yogurt, and miso. It’s also important to add different probiotic foods because they can help balance your gut microbiome and provide a more friendly diversity of gut bacteria.”
For more information on beneficial beverages, be sure to read The 11 Best Probiotic Drinks for Gut Health (And the 3 You Should Avoid).
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