New research shows that people who drink at least one glass of milk per day score better on memory and brain function tests than people who drink little to no milk.
Just one glass of milk boosts important key nutrients and may impact your brain and mental performance, according to researchers at the University of Maine.
Researchers tracked the milk consumption habits of more than 900 men and women, ages 23 to 98 and gave them brain tests, such as visual-spatial, verbal and working memory tests.
People with more milk and mild products in their diet performed five times better on the tests than non-milk drinkers. In fact, the more milk they ate the better they did on the tests.
Not surprisingly, milk drinkers tended to have healthier diets overall, but there was something about the milk specifically that offered the brain health advantage, the researchers say.
Milk has many established health benefits from making bones stronger to improving cardiovascular health. However, milk’s new potential to stave off mental decline is a unique benefit with great potential to impact America's aging population.
More research is needed to confirm study results and to identify the nutrients that directly affect brain function. In the meantime, the researchers suggest that adding just a glass of milk is an easy way to impede or prevent neuropsychological dysfunction.
The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend three glasses of lowfat or fat free milk daily for adults. Each 8-ounce glass contains nine essential nutrients Americans need, including calcium and vitamin D. This is just another reason to start each day with lowfat or fat free milk.
Citation:
Crichton GE, Elias MF, Dore GA, Robbins MA. Relation between dairy food intake and cognitive function: The Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study. International Dairy Journal. 2012; 22:15-23
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