Dr Shirin Hooshmand and colleagues conducted a clinical trial involving 25 healthy older adults, who were in their 60s or 70s.
Participants consumed 26 grams of freeze-dried strawberry powder every day for eight weeks.
The consumption of 26 grams of strawberry powder is the equivalent to two servings of fresh strawberries.
Next was a four-week wash-out period, where the participants didn’t take supplementation; the participants then took a control powder for eight weeks.
Measurements included cognition performance, cardiometabolic health, blood pressure, and waist circumference.
When in the strawberry group, systolic blood pressure dropped and the speed of cognitive processing improved.
In more detail, at the end of the eight-week period, those who ate strawberries increased their cognitive processing speed by 5.2 percent.
An improvement in systolic blood pressure was made, with the reading dropping by 3.6 percent.
Dr Hooshmand said: “Previously published research has already shown some of the acute and long-term cardiovascular health benefits of strawberries in different populations, so this is great to confirm some of those findings.”
Dr Hooshman added: “This study demonstrates that consuming strawberries may promote cognitive function and improve cardiovascular risk factors like hypertension.
“We’re encouraged that a simple dietary change, like adding strawberries to the daily diet, may improve these outcomes in older adults.”
By eating a serving of strawberries daily, you are helping towards the NHS recommendation of “five-a-day”.
Five-a-day refers to the requirement to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables daily.
Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables daily is linked to better health outcomes.
By eating fruit and vegetables, the body is gaining vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants.
These components may help to reduce the risk of disease, including cancer and heart disease.
The study, which was funded by the California Strawberry Commission, was published in the American Society for Nutrition, on July 24, 2023.
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