Cocoa Flavanol Study at Columbia University Medical Center

Who We Are

Research in the Division of Behavioral Medicine aims to understand how mechanisms by which psychological, psychosocial and behavioral factors contribute to the development and maintenance of disease and to develop treatment interventions targeting these mechanisms.

Our Study

We are recruiting for a study that examines how cocoa flavanols impacts cognition and the brain.We hope to determine if cocoa flavanols increases attention and memory.

How it Works

You will be asked to take cocoa flavanol-containing capsules during the course of the study, and asked to complete computer and paper tests to assess your memory and other cognitive abilities. You will also have an MRI scan of your brain. You may receive up to $310 for your participation. Click here for more.

Are you Eligible?

Find out if you are eligible by clicking above to complete an online pre-screen. If you meet our criteria, we will invite you to meet with us to see if you are eligible for the study.Click here for more.

The study investigators discuss how dietary cocoa flavanols — naturally occurring bioactives found in cocoa —reversed age-related memory decline in healthy older adults. The previous study, published in the advance online issue of Nature Neuroscience, provides the first direct evidence that one component of age-related memory decline in humans is caused by changes in a specific region of the brain and that this form of memory decline can be improved by a dietary intervention.