American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance

A new study reveals that elderly individuals with mild cognitive impairment who take huge doses of B vitamins everyday may reduce the rate at which their brains shrink by 50%, resulting in a much slower progression toward dementia, and eventually Alzheimer’s disease.

According to the findings of studies conducted by researchers from Oxford University, England, in an article published in Plos One (Public Library of Science One), this two-year clinical trial is the largest ever which examined the effect of B vitamins on “mild cognitive impairment” (MCI).

Individuals with MCI have a higher risk of progression to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia notes Jesse Slome, director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance the industry’s trade group.

“People with mild cognitive impairment can function in everyday activities, but they may have problems with memory, such as recalling people’s names, losing the flow of a conversation, and not remembering where they left things,” Slome explains. Approximately 16% of individuals aged over 70 years are affected by mild cognitive impairment.
David Smith, University Department of Pharmacology and Department of Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics, University of Oxford, trial co-leader, said:

The single-center, randomized, double-blind controlled trial involved 168 volunteers who all had been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment.  One group received high daily doses of vitamins B₆ (0.5 mg/d) and B₁₂ (20 mg/d), as well as folic acid (0.8 mg/d). This was 300 times the recommended daily intake for B₁₂, 15 times daily recommended amounts of B₆, and 4 times daily recommended intake of folic acid.

The other group received a placebo (tablets without any active ingredients).  Treatment lasted 24 months.

The principal outcome measure was the change in the rate of atrophy of the whole brain, assessed by serial volumetric MRI scans.

The researchers found that the B vitamin with folic acid group had an average brain shrinkage of 0.76% per year.   The placebo group had an average brain shrinkage of 1.08% per year. 

Those with the highest homocysteine blood levels at the start of the trial who took the B vitamins and folic acid experienced half the brain shrinkage compared to individuals with the highest homocysteine blood levels at the start and who received the placebo. 

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Tags: Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's disease, dementia, long term care, long-term care insurance, statistics, study

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