A new study has suggested that having around 80p peanuts a day could have a big impact on health and stave off dementia. Doctors at Maastricht University Medical Centre said eating about 80 unsalted, skin-roasted peanuts every day for four months can help your brain work better.

They found that this amount of peanuts increased blood flow to important parts of the brain, which are key to thinking and memory. The study was published in this month’s edition of Clinical Nutrition.

The scientists carried out a randomised test with 31 people aged around 67 who consumed 60 g/day of unsalted, skin-roasted peanuts or no peanuts as a control for 16 weeks, separated by an 8-week break.

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In follow up tests, brain vascular function was assessed by checking blood flow in the brain with cognitive performance evaluated. The results were impressive, with those eating peanuts seeing 3.6 per cent greater cerebral blood flow (CBF), which helps the brain get more oxygen and nutrients. At the same time, their verbal memory improved by 5.8 per cent, meaning they were better at remembering things they heard or read, and grey matter increased by 4.5 per cent. Systolic blood pressure and pulse pressure also decreased.

To ensure the study results were accurate, the researchers setsome rules for the participants, such as they were not allowed to eat any other types of nuts or foods that contain nuts, they had to avoid exercising for 48 hours before each check-up, they were asked to not drink alcohol the day before their visits, and had to fast for at least 12 hours overnight before each visit.

Study author Peter Joris, an associate professor in the Department of Nutrition and Movement Sciences, NUTRIM, Maastricht University Medical Centre, said: “CBF is an important physiological marker of brain vascular function and refers to the amount of blood that flows through the brain, delivering oxygen and nutrients that are essential for maintaining brain health.”

The findings are especially important for older adults, whose brain blood vessels can weaken with age, increasing the risk of dementia. According to the World Health Organisation, 57 million people worldwide had dementia in 2021, and this number is expected to rise to 78 million by 2030 and 139 million by 2050.

The report concluded: “Daily consumption of skin-roasted peanuts for 16 weeks improved brain vascular function in healthy older men and women. These favourable effects may underlie the observed improvements in verbal memory, highlighting a potential mechanism by which increased peanut intake beneficially affects cognitive performance.”