Prevention of Dementia with Vitamin B

By Bonnie Jenkins, Advanced Natural Medicine

One friend of mine named Sandy recently started complaining that she didn’t seem to be quite as sharp anymore. Now Sandy has a lot on her plate – and on her mind, but the occasional forgetfulness and the extra few seconds it seems to take her to grasp a new concept is driving her crazy. And she’s noticed that it’s gotten worse with each passing birthday. As Sandy says, “it seems like I have to run faster just to keep up!”

I can understand her frustration. After all, most of us experience some degree of forgetfulness as we age. Fortunately, new research gives more credence to one familiar group of nutrients that can help reverse this mild cognitive decline

This B is for “Brain”

Over the years, the B vitamins have gained a well-earned reputation for boosting cognitive performance among older adults. Studies have linked adequate amounts of this family of nutrients to memory, speed of information processing, verbal reasoning and verbal ability. And, while all of the B’s are important to brain health, a new study presented at a recent conference on the prevention of dementia points to folic acid as the real superstar.

It turns out that folic acid, long used to improve heart health, can also boost brainpower – and for the same reason. Folic acid lowers homocysteine levels. As I’ve mentioned before, homocysteine is a toxic waste product produced during cellular metabolism and high levels not only increase the risk of heart attack, it may also put people at higher risk for cognitive decline and even dementia.

In the study by researchers from Wageningen University in the Netherlands, 818 men and women in their 50s and 60s took either a daily dose of 800 mcg. of folic acid or a placebo. All of the volunteers had normal blood levels of vitamin B12 and levels of homocysteine near the upper range of normal at the start of the study.

After three years, the folic acid users’ homocysteine levels had fallen an average of 25 percent and they scored higher on tests measuring memory, reaction speed and thinking time. In fact, according to the researchers, these folks displayed memory skills of people five years younger. And they weren’t just less forgetful, they were smarter. The folic acid group was able to mentally process information as well as someone two years younger!

The Incredible Shrinking Brain

As good as folic acid seems to be for cognition, earlier studies suggest that it’s even better when it’s combined with another homocysteine-lowering B vitamin. In one investigation of more than 200 Australian women, scientists found that, while supplementing with folic acid improved memory and planning ability, adding B6 to the equation improved verbal ability.

What’s more, a growing number of scientists believe that decreasing homocysteine may also lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. One cross-sectional study by Boston University School of Medicine tracked more than 1,000 healthy people over eight years. During that time, 111 subjects developed dementia. And of those, 83 were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The common thread between these people was that they all had high homocysteine levels – and the higher the level, the more likely they were to suffer from Alzheimers.

But homocysteine doesn’t simply affect the way your brain functions. It may also impact the actual physical structure of your brain. This was shown in a joint study by a group of Australian scientists a few years ago. The researchers examined the homocysteine blood levels of 36 healthy people and then measured their brains. They found that the older people whose blood carried high amounts of homocysteine had smaller, atrophied brains. The scientists concluded that these signs of brain shrinkage meant that having more homocysteine in your body may make you more susceptible to developing Alzheimer’s.

The good news is that boosting your intake of folic acid, B-6 and B-12 can significantly lower homocysteine levels. Good dietary sources of these B vitamins include green leafy vegetables, fruits, whole grains, peas and dried beans. But to make sure you’re consistently getting an adequate amount of these homocysteine-busting nutrients, consider taking a comprehensive B-complex supplement. Look for one offering at least 800 mcg. of folic acid, 50 mg. of B-6 and 500 mcg. of B-12.

One Last Thing ...

Another way to protect cognition and memory is to eat a diet rich in foods containing vitamin E, including wheat germ, whole grains, sunflower seeds and soybeans. Research in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that this antioxidant may protect the brain from suffering debilitating harm by protecting it from oxidative damage.

According to Dr. Kamal Masaki of the University of Hawaii in Honolulu, adding vitamin C to the mix may provide the brain with further protection. Dr. Masaki’s study of more than 3,000 older men found that those who took both vitamin C and E supplements at least once a week were 88 percent less likely to have vascular dementia four years after the research started and 69 percent less likely to have non-vascular forms of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

As research continues into how nutrients affect the aging brain, we can expect more impressive findings on how to eat for better thinking. Meanwhile, taking a good multivitamin, along with a separate B-complex supplement just might keep you from losing your mind.

This Just In ...

Like most Americans, I was shocked and saddened at the news of Peter Jennings death from lung cancer last week. He had been the narrator of our lives for more than two decades, helping us to understand the world around us.

While his comforting presence on the evening news will be missed, his passing was also sad reminder of just how difficult it is to diagnose and treat the nation's leading cancer killer. Each day, lung cancer kills 447 people in America alone. And while early detection can dramatically boost the chance of survival, there are few symptoms in the initial stages and no reliable ways to screen for the disease. As a result, two-thirds of the people who develop lung cancer don’t know it until it’s too late.

What really killed Peter Jennings, and 87 percent of the people who develop advanced lung cancer, was smoking. Smoking also increases the risk of heart disease; cancer of the mouth, nose, throat, bladder, kidneys, pancreas, esophagus and stomach; chronic inflammation; emphysema; and peptic ulcer. It also contributes to more aggressive prostate cancer, cataracts and decreased fertility. Oh, and did I mention that smoking also increases homocysteine? Tobacco is also the most addictive drug on the planet.

While I’ve stressed the importance of quitting in the past, I’ll say it again: If you smoke, stop – NOW! Yes it’s hard – possibly the most difficult thing you’ll ever do. But the rewards are countless. There are a number of aids that can help you quit, including nicotine patches and gums, acupuncture, hypnosis, even drugs. And using a combination of these methods concurrently may boost the odds of becoming permanently smoke-free.

Supporting yourself with good nutrition is also critical while you are trying to quit. Antioxidant-rich foods, especially fresh fruits and vegetables, are especially important since smokers typically have lower serum levels of vitamin C, beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin. Studies have also found that supplementing with 200 mcg. of selenium may lower the risk of lung cancer in some ex-smokers.

However you choose to quit, just do it! After all, a life is a terrible thing to waste.

***

References:

“Folic Acid Improves Memory by Five Years.” Environmental Nutrition. August 2005.

Masaki KH, Losonczy KG, Izmirlian G, et al. “Association of vitamin E and C supplement use with cognitive function and dementia in elderly men.” Neurology. 2000;54:1265-1272.

Reid ME, Duffield-Lillico AJ, Garland L, et al. “Selenium supplementation and lung cancer incidence: an update of the nutritional prevention of cancer trial.” Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. 2002;11:1285-1291.

Sachdev PS, Valenzuela FM, Wang XL, et al. “Relationship between plasma homocysteine levels and brain atrophy in healthy elderly individuals.” Neurology. 2002; 58: 1539-1541.

Seshadri S, Beiser A, Selhub J, et al. “Plasma homocysteine as a risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.” New England Journal of Medicine. 2002;346:476-483.