Adding olive oil to daily diet may help prevent dementia – NBC Boston

A new study put out by a group of Harvard researchers says mixing in some olive oil with your daily dishes can go a long way in fighting dementia.

The new study showed that consuming seven grams, or about a half a teaspoon, of olive oil per day will increase vascular health and decrease a person’s risk of experiencing a dementia-related death by 28%, regardless of what a person’s diet also consists of.

Specifically, olive oil will most help the blood vessels in your brain, according to Dr. Vin Gupta, an NBC News medical analyst.

“That means reduced inflammation, increased blood flow and decreased risk of clotting in those blood vessels, which we know can predispose to early on-set dementia,” Gupta told NBC News.

“Olive oil appears to be associated with decreased instances of all those things, including increased vascular health in the brain and ultimately a decreased possibility of dying from dementia,” Gupta continued.

Gupta recommends people substitute things like mayonnaise or margarin with their meals and instead use olive oil.

“Even a half a teaspoon makes a difference,” Gupta said.

The artificial sweetener is common in diet sodas and other low-calorie sweet foods.