Vitamin Information Center

A KEY vitamin found in fish, meat and milk may protect the brain as it ages, according to a new study.

The study, of 107 people aged 61-87, found that vitamin B12 could help stop the brain shrinking and maybe prevent memory loss in older people and dementia.

The study showed that those with lower vitamin B12 levels in their blood were six times more likely to experience brain shrinkage compared with those who had higher levels of the vitamin.

Researcher Anna Vogiatzoglou, from the department of physiology, anatomy and genetics at Oxford University, said: “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.

“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.”

The study looked at brain volume and loss was measured every year for five years. None of the people enrolled in the study were suffering memory loss at the start of the study and had sufficient vitamin B12.

The participants were given yearly physical examinations, MRI scans of their brains, tests to check their cognitive and memory skills, and blood tests to determine their levels of vitamin B12.

The results showed decrease in brain volume was greater among those with lower vitamin B12 levels.

Elderly people who consume enough meat, fish and milk containing vitamin B12 may help prevent their brains from shrinking and may preserve their memories, Oxford researchers said.

People who had higher vitamin B12 levels were six times less likely to experience brain shrinkage compared with those who had lower levels, according to a study from the university’s Oxford Project to Investigate Memory and Ageing in the journal Neurology.

Vitamin B12 is important for the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system and the formation of blood. Deficiency of the vitamin is linked to tiredness, irritability and depression as well as decreased mental capacity, concentration and memory. A shrinking brain is associated with the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Simply adjusting our diets to consume more vitamin B12 through eating meat, fish, fortified cereals or milk may be something we can easily do to prevent brain shrinkage and so perhaps save our memory,” said lead Oxford researcher Anna Vogiatzoglou.

The researchers performed brain scans, memory testing and physical examinations on 107 people aged 61-87.

A diet lacking in B-vitamins may increase the risk of vascular dementia, according to a US study.

Researchers tested the effects of a vitamin B-deficient diet on the spatial learning and memory of mice. They found that mice fed a diet deficient in folate and vitamins B6 and B12 over 10 weeks had deficits in spatial learning and memory compared with mice fed a normal diet.

Examination of the brains of the vitamin B-deprived mice showed that they had suffered microvascular damage in the regions of the brain involved in memory.

The vitamin B-deprived mice also had high blood serum levels of homocysteine, a chemical that has previously been associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment.

The researchers concluded that a diet deficient in B-vitamins causes cerebrovascular damage, and could result in cognitive impairment and dementia or other cerebrovascular disease.