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Title: High Levels of Vitamin B12 in Elders Reduce Risk of Brain Shrinkage
URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/22B90E.htm
Doctor's Guide
September 9, 2008

ST. PAUL, Minn -- September 9, 2008 -- Vitamin B₁₂ may protect against brain volume loss in older people, according to a study published in the September 9 issue of Neurology.

"Previous research on the vitamin has had mixed results and few studies have been done specifically with brain scans in elderly populations. We tested for vitamin B₁₂ levels in a unique, more accurate way by looking at 2 certain markers for it in the blood," said author Anna Vogiatzoglou, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.

For the study, 107 people aged 61 to 87 years underwent brain scans, memory testing, and physical exams. Researchers also collected blood samples to check vitamin B₁₂ levels. Brain scans and memory tests were then performed 5 years later.

The study found that people who had higher vitamin B₁₂ levels were 6 times less likely to experience brain shrinkage compared with those who had lower levels of the vitamin in their blood. None of the people in the study had vitamin B₁₂ deficiency.

"Many factors that affect brain health are thought to be out of our control, but this study suggests that simply adjusting our diets to consume more vitamin B₁₂ through eating meat, fish, fortified cereals, or milk may be something we can easily adjust to prevent brain shrinkage and so perhaps save our memory," said Vogiatzoglou.

"Research shows that vitamin B₁₂ deficiency is a public health problem, especially among the elderly, so more vitamin B₁₂ intake could help reverse this problem. Without carrying out a clinical trial, we acknowledge that it is still not known whether B₁₂ supplementation would actually make a difference in elderly persons at risk for brain shrinkage."

Vogiatzoglou said the study did not look at whether taking vitamin B₁₂ supplements would have the same effect on memory.


SOURCE: American Academy of Neurology

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