By WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: For Complete Post, Click Here…
Could taking a daily multivitamin supplement help maintain cognitive health with aging and possibly prevent cognitive decline? According to new research, it might. A new study found that taking a daily supplement may improve cognition in older adults, but additional studies are needed to confirm these findings before any health recommendations are made. The study also showed that daily use of a cocoa extract supplement does not benefit cognition.
“Our study showed that although cocoa extract did not affect cognition, daily multivitamin-mineral supplementation resulted in statistically significant cognitive improvement,” Baker said. “This is the first evidence of cognitive benefit in a large longer-term study of multivitamin supplementation in older adults.”
According to the researchers’ estimations, three years of multivitamin supplementation roughly translated to a 60% slowing of cognitive decline (about 1.8 years). The results showed that benefits were relatively more pronounced in participants with significant cardiovascular disease, which is important because these individuals are already at increased risk for cognitive impairment and decline.
