Next time you open a good bottle of wine, don't forget to sniff before you sip. Not only is smelling the wine an important part of the tasting process, but it could also be good for your brain health.
New research published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience found that master sommeliers—who were described in the study as "experts in wine and thus in olfaction"—could be less likely to develop Alzheimer's and Parkinson's than people in other professions.
Scientists at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas examined brain scans of sommeliers against a test group of people in other professions, and found that the sommeliers had "enhanced volume" in certain parts of their brain. Basically, according to the scans, their brains were thicker in certain places, specifically those tied to smell and memory.
"There were regional activation differences in a large area involving the right olfactory and memory regions, with heightened activation specifically for sommeliers during an olfactory task," stated the study.
"This is particularly important given the regions involved, which are the first to be impacted by many neurodegenerative diseases," said the researchers. "Overall, these differences suggest that specialized expertise and training might result in enhancements in the brain well into adulthood."
So, smelling wine now could pay health benefits later.
The sample size was small, only 13 sommeliers compared with 13 people in other professions. But we're not taking any chances. Plus, who doesn't love the smell of a good Pinot Noir?
And after you're done , go ahead and drink a glass. That's been shown to prevent Alzheimer's as well.
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