Vitamin B12 Key to Aging Brain(mal B12 levels yet there was a differenc...),Health

Date:9/8/2008

mal B12 levels, yet there was a difference between the higher levels and the lower levels in terms of brain shrinkage, which is new information which could potentially change what we recommend to people in terms of diet," said Dr. Jonathan Friedman, an associate professor of surgery and neuroscience and experimental therapeutics at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and associate dean of the College of Medicine, Bryan-College Station campus.

Other risk factors for brain atrophy include high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.

Not only might B12 levels be a modifiable risk factor for cognitive decline, it might also be a clue to help clinicians assess cognitive problems earlier on.

Right now, it's not clear what the biological mechanisms behind the link might be, nor is it clear whether added B12 would avert brain atrophy.

"We are doing a clinical trial in Oxford in which we are giving B vitamins [including B12] to elderly people with memory impairment," Vogiatzoglou said. "In this trial, we are doing MRI scans at the start and the end, and so, we will be able to find out if taking B vitamins really does slow down the shrinking of the brain. The trial will be completed in 2009."

More information

Learn more about vitamin B-12 at the National Institutes of Health.

SOURCES: Anna Vogiatzoglou, R.D., doctoral candidate, department of physiology, anatomy and genetics, University of Oxford, England; Jonathan Friedman, M.D., associate professor, surgery and neuroscience and experimental therapeutics, Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine, and associate dean, College of Medicine, Bryan-College Station campus, and director, Texas Brain and Spine Institute, College Station; Shari Midoneck, M.D., associate clinical professor, medicine, Weill Cornell
'/>"/>

Copyright©2008 ScoutNews,LLC. All rights reserved

0 GOOD

Page: 1 2 3
Related medicine news :

1. Genetic variants associated with vitamin B12
2. Vitamin B, Folate Supplements Wont Help Heart
3. New Vitamin Targets Needs of Nurses
4. Low Vitamin D Raises Womens Hip Fracture Risk
5. Lack of Vitamin D Boosts Death Risk
6. Vitamin C injections slow tumor growth in mice
7. Vitalize(TM) Receives Top Multivitamin Rating
8. July 2008 Mayo Clinic Womens HealthSource Highlights Vitamin D, Savvy Use of Sunscreen and Gastrointestinal Upset and Celiac Disease
9. Moms Vitamin D Levels Affect Babys Dental Health
10. Mothers vitamin D status during pregnancy will affect her babys dental health
11. Photo: VitaminLife.com Sees Internet Sales Up 40% in Major Metro Markets as Gas Crisis Looms; Shopping Behaviors Change as People Conserve Gas