A study was published a few years ago in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition describing the positive effects of resveratrol on the brain. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study, each subject received a 250-mg oral dose of trans-resveratrol, a 500-mg dose of the same, and placebo, in random order.
After a 45-minute resting absorption period, the participants performed a selection of cognitive tasks to activate the frontal cortex for an additional 36 minutes. Cerebral blood flow was assessed in the frontal cortex throughout the post-treatment period with the use of near-infrared spectroscopy. The study's lead author, Dr. David O. Kennedy, concluded that the results "confirm that single doses of resveratrol can modulate brain function."
Resveratrol administration resulted in dose-dependent increases in cerebral blood flow during task performance. There was also an increase in deoxyhemoglobin after both doses of resveratrol, which suggested enhanced oxygen extraction toward the end of the 45-minute absorption phase. This increase was sustained throughout task performance. Resveratrol metabolites were present in plasma throughout the cognitive task period.
This study was not the first of its kind - there are many other ones like this one.