B-vitamins & the brain

Nutrition Action Healthletter, Nov, 2005

Worried about your memory? Folate and other B-vitamins may forestall the loss of spatial thinking with age.

Researchers gave a series of tests to more than 300 men aged 50 to 85 and then retested them three years later. Scores on a "spatial copying" test declined more in those who started with low blood levels of folate than in those who started with higher levels. (The test measures the ability to copy rectangles, cubes, and other shapes. It reflects how easily a person becomes Iost--a common problem among people who are eventually diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.)

Scores on a test of recall memory fell most in men who started out with high blood levels of homocysteine. Consuming too little folate, vitamin B-6, and vitamin B-12 can raise levels of homocysteine.

A separate four-year study of 800 older Italians found a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease in those with low folate or high homocysteine levels.

What to do: These types of studies can't determine whether low levels of B-vitamins caused mental decline or vice versa. However, it makes sense to take a multitamin with a day's worth of folate, B-6, and B-12 to play it safe. Don't take high doses until studies clarify whether they can lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, or colon cancer.

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 82: 493, 627, 636, 2005