Tea and dark chocolate could help you live longer, Queens study shows
The study found those who consume a diverse range of foods rich in flavonoids, such as tea, berries, dark chocolate, and apples, could lower their risk of developing serious health conditions and have the potential to live longer.
The study was led by a team of researchers from Queen's University Belfast, Edith Cowan University Perth, and the Medical University of Vienna and Universitat Wien.
The findings reveal increasing the diversity of flavonoids within your diet could help prevent the development of health conditions such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and neurological disease.
Flavonoids are found in plant foods like tea, blueberries, strawberries, oranges, apples, grapes, and even red wine and dark chocolate.
Published on Tuesday in Nature Food, the research tracked more than 120,000 participants aged from 40 to 70 years old for over a decade.
It is the first study of its kind to suggest there is a benefit to consuming a wide range of flavonoids beyond that of simply consuming a high quantity.
Study co-lead, Professor Aedín Cassidy from the Co-Centre for Sustainable Food Systems and Institute for Global Food Security at Queen's said: 'We have known for some time that higher intakes of dietary flavonoids, powerful bioactives naturally present in many foods and drinks, can reduce the risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and neurological conditions like Parkinson's.
'We also know from lab data and clinical studies that different flavonoids work in different ways, some improve blood pressure, others help with cholesterol levels and decrease inflammation. This study is significant as the results indicate that consuming a higher quantity and wider diversity has the potential to lead to a greater reduction in ill health than just a single source.'
Edith Cowan University research fellow, first author and co-lead of the study, Dr Benjamin Parmenter, made the initial discovery that a flavonoid-diverse diet is good for health.
He explained: 'Flavonoid intakes of around 500mg a day was associated with a 16% lower risk of all-cause mortality, as well as a 10% lower risk of CVD [cardiovascular disease], type 2 diabetes, and respiratory disease. That's roughly the amount of flavonoids that you would consume in two cups of tea.
'However, those who consumed the widest diversity of flavonoids, had an even lower risk of these diseases, even when consuming the same total amount.'
Read More
Families criticise delays to inquiry into epilepsy drug valproate
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
24-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Disability advocate Ann Kennedy defies illness to stage first art exhibit in 17 years
Ann Kennedy, who was born in 1952, has fond memories from when she last exhibited in Bray, in 2008, when she recalled eating pizza on Albert Walk, with friends and family, before returning home only to lapse into a terribly difficult period. As she said herself: 'I ceased all creative work for 10 full years'. That creative slump was brought on by her illness, which she so candidly described in her memoir, Unprotected, which details the difficulties she has faced in life due to being born with Rubella. Congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) is an illness in infants that results from maternal infection with rubella virus during pregnancy. A child can be born with severe hearing loss and/or visual impairment, congenital cataracts, heart defects, and gradually develop a myriad of other significant challenges. Ann shares this same birth experience with her twin sister, Margaret. In 2017, she told the Irish Independent: 'I woke at seven this morning, and I was crying. I'm depressed and feel utterly hopeless. That often happens. Sometimes we think of ending it all; we are so terribly weary of fighting.' Those heartbreaking words were written when she and her sister, both then 64, admitted they were struggling to get the professional help and support they needed. As children growing up in Killiney, they had to battle with a hearing impairment, and by their early 20s, had followed their own paths. Ann was doing animation in London, collaborating on projects such as the Watership Down movie and promotions for Pink Floyd, while Margaret trained as a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Ann returned to Ireland and became an accomplished artist and award-winning writer and illustrator of children's books but when the sisters were in their 40s, they encountered health issues that had a serious impact on their ability to function. Over the next few years, they were both tested and it was discovered that some of their health problems included Parkinson's disease and muscle myopathy (muscle wasting disease), which requires them to use wheelchairs most of the time. They moved to Greystones but left in 2015, after what Ann described as 'dreadful years' in an open letter, which ended with the parting words: 'I never wish to see the place again and hope I can erase the memory from my mind swiftly once I do leave.' Thankfully, her memories of Bray are more florid as she makes a welcome return with her new exhibition, 'All in the Brain'. The exhibition of works slowly began to take form years after that visit in 2008 and the ensuing slump, when 'one day,' she said, 'being brave, I visited an art shop'. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more "I began again,' she said of the new exhibition. 'It was now all in the brain and the brain would have to perform in some fashion. I knew this was going to be different and punctuated with hesitancy, despondency and confusion. Grave self-doubt enveloped me. I worked from a perspective of loss. What I produced were experimentations, learning to capture my inadequacy and hopefully some adequacy. I gave myself permission to fail in the hope I could achieve.' While she admits she 'caved many times and withered', her strength and perseverance has brought the new body of work which will be on display at the gallery until Sunday, August 3. 'I propose to show a body of creative painting that defy my personal reason. I propose to offer hope to the community of sick, older people and those with disability that if you want to paint, then paint. The work will be eclectic as personal strength is returning and styles keep changing. I begin making decisions again, abandon some and accept others. It's all in the learning,' she said. 'A decade of inaction through ill health and mystery requires opening my personal Pandora's Box. Gold may not be in fact gold, but nothing can change a person who creates through love and abandon. That is my gold, silver and bronze. Even if not in equal proportions.' The opening reception for All in the Brain is on Sunday, July 27, from 3-5pm.
Irish Examiner
21-07-2025
- Irish Examiner
Sex File: My partner wants to try new things in bed
I am in my 60s and have been in a relationship with a man for ten years. We have always enjoyed our sex life, but now he keeps wanting to try new things, talking about fantasies of me with other men and women - including a female friend he has history with - which is turning me off. Is there a way back to the sex we used to enjoy? By the time men and women are in their mid to late 60s, sexual desire is usually declining and about half of all men in their 60s experience erectile dysfunction. The simplest explanation for the change in your partner's behaviour, therefore, is that he now needs stronger stimuli to achieve the same level of arousal and is using sexual fantasy to increase excitement. There seems to be some underlying concern for you about when the female friend he has history with became part of this narrative, but try not to jump to conclusions. He may simply be nursing an infatuation as a way of turbocharging his interest in sex. Whether an infatuation is reciprocated or not, it is a dopamine rush, a euphoric state fuelled by lust and novelty. The possessed can think of nothing else and so they strive to introduce the person they are fixated on into any conversation, at any opportunity. Telling you about his fantasies may be a way for your partner to increase his sexual energy, but it is quite likely that the woman in question is oblivious to your partner's sexual interest in her. Frenzied sexual vigour rarely comes from nowhere, especially in older men, so it's worth thinking about when this all started and what might have triggered it. Has he started watching a lot of porn? Did he start taking Viagra recently? Has he had other health issues? You don't mention any recent diagnoses, so this information may be irrelevant, but it is worth asking the questions in case they provide answers. Older men occasionally experience intense sexual fantasies, urges or behaviours as an unintended side-effect of drugs that are prescribed for medical conditions such as Parkinson's disease or restless leg syndrome. It's also well known that people with dementia can become overly interested in sex - but less well known that sexual behaviour can change before any sign of cognitive decline. Psychiatrists at Uskudar University in Istanbul published a case study of a 55-year-old man who had been brought to their clinic by his wife. She was upset because he had started to stay up all night talking to women online. He was also demanding more sex from her. Neither the patient nor his wife reported any cognitive decline but MRI scans of the husband's brain subsequently revealed that he had frontotemporal dementia. There is a lot to think about here. Your partner has been willing to share his fantasies with you and consistently puts you at the centre of them. These are good signs, but you might need to be more open about how his behaviour makes you feel so that he can allay any doubts you have about what is really driving it. If he can reassure you that there is no one else involved and that this is an attempt to inject some excitement into your relationship, there is every chance you can harness his newfound enthusiasm for sex in a very positive way. Send your questions to suzigodson@
Irish Independent
08-07-2025
- Irish Independent
New study could help people with Parkinson's get an earlier diagnosis
Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences found that behaviours such as rearing, walking and hunching in mice, associated with the loss of a specific type of midbrain dopamine (DA) neurons, are linked to Parkinson's disease. The earliest known signs of Parkinson's can include pain, anxiety, balance issues, stiffness, loss of smell, sleep problems and depression. Other signs like tremors, handwriting changes, and diminished facial expressions, appear later as the disease progresses. Gradually, patients may experience severe movement issues, highlighting the importance of early diagnosis and treatment. Until now, research has mostly focused on the functions of the DA neurons in mood regulation and reward mechanisms. These nerve cells are located in the midbrain regions substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA), are essential for regulating movement, and reward processing. But the roles of the DA neurons in more subtle and spontaneous behaviours remain poorly understood, scientists say. In the latest study, researchers discovered behaviours like rearing and hunching are associated with the loss of one type of SNc DA neurons, but not those in VTA. These subtle behaviours could serve as key markers of SNc DA neuron loss, and enhance our understanding of Parkinson's, the study found. Scientists used an advanced artificial intelligence behaviour analysis system to examine the movement of two mouse models with a dopamine neuron depletion. Using this approach, researchers could capture detailed and nuanced behavioural features that traditional methods may overlook. The study found reductions in rearing and hunching behaviour in the PD model, which correlates directly with the loss of DA neurons in the SNc but not the VTA. Another behaviour in the mouse models called climbing, which is similar to rearing, was also found to be strongly linked to the loss of DA neurons in the midbrain's SNc area. The findings underscore the need for monitoring rearing behaviour as potential behavioural markers in tracking the progression of Parkinson's disease, scientists say. (© The Independent)
