Vitamin Information Center

Taking vitamin C or E supplements, either individually or in combination, does not appear to lower the risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease in older adults, study findings suggest.”Our study confirms findings from other studies,” lead investigator Dr Shelly L. Gray of the University of Washington, Seattle said. Vitamin E does not prevent memory problems or dementia.

Gray and colleagues followed 2 969 adults, 65 years of age or older, for an average of 5.5 years to determine if the use of vitamin E or C supplements altered the risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

How the study was done
At study entry, nearly 33 and 38 percent, respectively, reported using vitamin E and C supplements, and 25 percent of the participants reported taking the vitamin supplements concurrently, the researchers reported the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

The participants were an average of 75 years old and had no cognitive impairments. The investigators conducted biennial assessments for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Over the course of the study, 405 participants developed dementia and of these, 289 developed Alzheimer’s disease. As mentioned, the researchers observed no relationship between vitamin supplements and dementia risk.

The current evidence does not support the use of vitamin E or C supplements for the prevention of dementia in older adults, Gray and colleagues conclude.

“Older adults are still encouraged to eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables,” Gray said. These foods provide natural sources of vitamins E and C and other substances that may have health benefits. � (ReutersHealth)

HURSDAY March 13, 2008 (Foodconsumer.org) — Vitamin D is more than more important than thought and it can prevent a range of diseases including cancers.  But a new study cautions that just because you live in a Southern state like Arizona does not mean you would get enough vitamin D through exposure to the sun. This is particularly true in blacks and Hispanics.

For the study, Elizabeth T Jacobs from University of Arizona and the Medical University of South Carolina and colleagues tested Arizonian participants of a colorectal adenoma prevention study for their serum vitamin D known as 25 hydroxyvitamin D or 25(OH)D.

They found 55.5 percent of blacks and 37.6 percent of Hispanics were more likely to have deficient 25(OH)D concentrations (<20 ng per mL) in their blood compared to 22.7 percent in non-Hispanic whites.  Sun exposure had a greater effort on 25(OH)D in whites than in blacks and Hispanics.

The researchers concluded that “Despite residing in a region with high chronic sun exposure, adults in southern Arizona are commonly deficient in vitamin D deficiency, particularly blacks and Hispanics.”

The study was published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 87, No. 3, 608-613, March 2008.