COMBINED PHYSICAL TRAINING ASSOCIATED WITH COCOA FLAVONOL SUPPLEMENTATION IMPROVES MEMORY AND INFLAMMATION, IN AN EXPERIMENTAL AGING MODEL

Aging leads to irreversible morphological and physiological alterations in the CNS, resulting in progressive impairment of functional and cognitive abilities. Research on aging and its effects on cognition has made significant progress in recent years; however, it is not fully elucidated. D-galactose injection has been widely used as an animal model to study aging-related pathologies. To mitigate the deleterious effects of aging, physical training combined with nutritional interventions, have been shown to be effective tools in controlling metabolic and cognitive deficits in the elderly. Diets rich in polyphenols, more specifically flavonols found in cocoa, may reduce the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, inflammation, and attenuate the aging process. Although supplementation with flavonols and physical training can bring various health benefits, the synergistic effects of these two interventions on cognitive and inflammatory parameters associated with aging have not been extensively investigated.