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Candidate of Medical Sciences, nutritionist Natalya Denisova in conversation with “AiF” explained which drink will help reduce the risk of dementia and other degenerative brain diseases, and will also help normalize cholesterol levels and prevent blood clots, Tengri Life reports.

We’re talking about cocoa. According to the doctor, one or two cups of this drink a day will help improve brain function and preserve memory, especially in people over 65 years of age. This means that drinking cocoa can, to a certain extent, prevent the development of degenerative diseases of the nervous system, in particular Alzheimer’s disease.

The secret of cocoa is the content of antioxidants, which belong to the group of polyphenols. They help improve the functioning of small blood vessels in the brain. Polyphenols help normalize blood cholesterol levels, improve the condition of the cell wall, the rheological properties of blood, that is, maintaining it in a liquid state and preventing the formation of blood clots.

The healthiest drink will be one made from natural cocoa powder, not instant. Moreover, when preparing it yourself, you can control the amount of sugar and fat content of cream or milk.

However, there are people who are not recommended to drink cocoa too often. In particular, these are patients with gout. Cocoa increases the amount of uric acid in the blood and can lead to an exacerbation of this disease. It is not recommended to abuse the drink for overweight people, since cocoa is very high in calories, especially if you drink it with milk and sugar. And the healthiest drink will be one prepared without adding sugar or full-fat milk.

But for people who suffer from gastritis with high acidity, duodenal ulcer, without exacerbation of the disease, it is better to drink cocoa with cow or goat milk. It has a softening effect and protects the gastric mucosa from irritating effects.