Eating strawberries,apple and oranges every other day may help parkinson's patients live longer

Eating a portion of strawberries every other day can extend the lives of Parkinson's patients, a study suggests.

Consuming tea, apples and orange juice could also have the same benefits, experts say.

They are all packed full of antioxidants which are believed to help protect brain cells — that normally die off in the disease — from damage.

One of these is flavonoids, which research suggests can help to soothe inflammation and treat a range of conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. They can be found in a variety of foods.

Scientists at Pennsylvania University tracked the diets of 1,250 Parkinson's sufferers for three decades.

Those who consumed at least 673mg of flavonoids per day, on average, were 70 per cent more likely to be alive by the end of the study.

This is the equivalent to eating about one entire packet of strawberries or six apples per day.

But researchers said the results were 'exciting' because they also suggest that just three servings a week could benefit Parkinson's patients.

And even switching to red wine could help, they claimed, because it also contains high amounts of flavonoids. Parkinson's gradually gets worse over time as more brain cells die, with patients eventually left struggling to complete day-to-day tasks.

It can lead to muscle shaking and stiffness, as well as trouble moving muscles quickly.

Treatment currently focuses on managing symptoms, and there is no cure for the condition.

But sufferers are expected to live to a near-normal age thanks to advances in treatments.

It affects around one in 500 people in the UK and one in 330 in the US, with most patients being in their 50s and over.Professor Xiang Gao, the epidemiologist who led the study, admitted more research was needed to explain why flavonoids helped to ease the condition.

His study was observational, meaning it did not look at why strawberries and other fruits could have a protective effect on Parkinson's sufferers.

Professor Gao said: 'If someone with Parkinson's is able to add a few servings of berries, apples, oranges and tea to their weekly diets, our results suggest it may be an easy and low-risk way to possibly improve their outcome.

'And while we do not encourage people who do not currently drink alcohol to start, people who do drink could consider shifting to red wine.'

Parkinson's patients included in the study had an average age of 72 years and were evenly split between men and women.

They were drawn from major studies that began in 1986, which were then tracked up to June 2018.

All filled in questionnaires on their diets every two to four years, allowing scientists to estimate how many flavonoids they were consuming a day.

Participants were then split into four groups based on their intake — with the lowest consumers taking in 134mg a day, compared to 673mg among the highest.

But the researchers admitted these were 'extreme' brackets. And the effects were not as stark among men.

Over the 32 years of the study, a total of 944 people — or 75 per cent — died. Many Parkinson's patients die with the condition rather than from it.

As well as noticing a difference in survival rates between the two groups based on daily intake, they also looked at whether consuming three portions of berries a week had a protective effect.

Results mirrored those for the other group, also showing patients were less likely to die by the end of the study, compared to people who only consumed one serving a month.

The study, which was published in the journal Neurology, did not account for other life factors such as weight, smoking and socio-economic status.

A wealth of studies has also previously suggested flavonoids can help to protect against Parkinson's and other diseases.

Another paper by Professor Gao from 2012 also found that eating strawberries cut the risk of men who have Parkinson's dying by 40 per cent.