An extract of pine bark could be used to treat traumatic brain injury, researchers in New Zealand have found.
Sixty people with ongoing cognitive difficulties due to traumatic brain injury received a dose of Enzogenol, a pine bark extract, for either a six or 12-week period.
Participants exhibited a statistically significant improvement on cognitive failures such as walking into a room and forgetting why you did so, failure to recall names, forgetting directions and not remembering to respond to important correspondence.
Senior research fellow Dr Alice Theadom, from the Auckland University of Technology, noted that preliminary results showed the extract had potential.
"The pilot trial has revealed some promising findings for use of the Enzogenol supplement to improve everyday cognitive failures. We'll now be looking at conducting a full scale clinical trial to determine the effectiveness," she said.
In other news, a paper published in journal PLoS ONE stated that the structure of a woodpecker's head could hold the secret to preventing traumatic brain injury through the design of better helmets.
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Posted by Matthew Heap
