Cerebral perfusion is not altered after 24 weeks of daily anthocyanin consumption in a population population of individuals at increased risk for dementia

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundPreliminary research suggests that anthocyanin‐consumption may improve memory, with a positive influence on the blood vessels as a possible contributing factor to these effects (1). We investigate the potential of long‐term consumption of anthocyanins to improve regional cerebral perfusion in a population of individuals at increased risk for dementia.MethodFrom 2018 to 2020 we performed a 24‐week randomised, doubleblind, placebo‐controlled study on 87 cognitively healthy, defined by Mini‐Mental State Exam (MMSE) and clinical dementia rating (CDR) (2. Anthocyanins were given in Medox® capsules that contained 80 mg natural purified anthocyanins, and the dosage was 4 capsules daily (i.e., 320mg/d of anthocyanins). Cerebral perfusion was measured non‐invasively with ASL‐MRI at baseline and after 24 weeks of daily anthocyanin‐consumption. The MRI‐scans analyzed using the FMRIB Software Library (FSL v 6.0.1; Analysis Group, Oxford, UK).ResultThe mean age in the anthocyanins group was 69.8 (± 5.5) years and the placebo group was 69.1 (± 6.0) years. When corrected for FWER, the anthocyanin > placebo analysis did not reveal any significant increased regional cerebral perfusion. There were no clusters found. When extracting maximum intensity, the lowest p‐value present was 0.839. When corrected for FWER, the placebo > anthocyanin analysis did not reveal any significant increased regional cerebral perfusion. The lowest p‐value present was 0.889 located in the right temporal pole.ConclusionOur results show no significant differences in cerebral perfusion found between the control and experimental group after 24 weeks. The data does not provide evidence for, in a population of older adults with risk of developing dementia, a daily dose of 320 mg anthocyanin ingested over a period of 24 weeks to affect cerebral perfusion to a level measureable by ASL‐MRI.1. Kent K, Charlton K, Roodenrys S, Batterham M, Potter J, Traynor V, et al. Consumption of anthocyanin‐rich cherry juice for 12 weeks improves memory and cognition 23 in older adults with mild‐to‐moderate dementia. Eur J Nutr. 2017;56(1):333‐41.2. Khalifa K, Bergland AK, Soennesyn H, Oppedal K, Oesterhus R, Dalen I, et al. Effects of Purified Anthocyanins in People at Risk for Dementia: Study Protocol for a Phase II Randomized Controlled Trial. Front Neurol. 2020;11:916.