Vitamins C and the Effect on Dementia

Clinical Study Title:
Association of vitamin E and C supplement use with cognitive function and dementia in elderly men.

Plain English Summary:

In this study, vitamins E and C were examined to determine if they have an effect on dementia or cognitive functioning. Participants in this study were older men whose use of both vitamins E and C had been gathered previously. These men were then asked to fill out questionnaires to obtain cognitive abilities and possible dementia. While neither of these vitamins were associated with reducing risk of Alzheimer’s disease, those participants who took vitamin E and C regularly had a reduced risk of vascular dementia, and had higher levels of cognitive functioning. This suggests that the daily use of a supplement containing vitamin E and C may help to reduce risk of certain types of dementia, as well as help to maintain cognitive functioning.

Authors:
Masaki KH. Losonczy KG. Izmirlian G. Foley DJ. Ross GW. Petrovitch H. Havlik R. White LR.

Institution:
Division of Geriatric Medicine, University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine, Honolulu, USA.

Country of Publication:
United States

Source:
Neurology. 54(6):1265-72, 2000 Mar 28.