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Effects of blueberry vs. carrot juice supplementation on muscle strength and performance of psychomotor tasks in older persons
Author(s) -
Schrager Matthew A.,
Darnell Lauren H.,
Kelly John F.,
Wood Bryan M.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.26.1_supplement.627.6
Subject(s) - psychomotor learning , antioxidant , medicine , cognition , physical medicine and rehabilitation , physiology , audiology , food science , physical therapy , psychology , chemistry , biochemistry , psychiatry
Maintaining functional mobility is critical for preserving quality of life in old age. Previous studies suggest an age‐associated reduced ability to mount an adequate antioxidant response to protect muscle and neural cells against reactive oxygen species (ROS). Research in humans is limited regarding antioxidant status/supplementation and motor, psychomotor, and cognitive function with aging, though studies in rats suggest that blueberries, which are high in antioxidant activity, are most successful in mitigating age‐associated deficits in psychomotor tasks. The purpose of this study was to test whether persons over 60 yr (n = 12; mean age=65.7±3.4 yr) benefited from 6 weeks of dietary supplementation of 2 cups per day of blueberries or 12 ounces per day of carrot juice. Paired sample t‐tests indicated a 12% increase in self‐selected walking speed; a 72% decrease in step errors during a challenging walking task; a 15% increase in walking speed during a dual‐task walking/talking test; and a 12.8% improvement in reaction time with blueberry supplementation (p<0.05). No similar improvements were found with carrot juice. These results are consistent with previous findings that blueberries have high antioxidant potential and possibly key compounds such as anthocyanins that carrots do not, and suggest that properties of blueberries may be beneficial for older persons in preserving motor and psychomotor function.