A new study suggests that a daily multivitamin may improve memory in older adults.
Millions of people take a multivitamin every day. Some people believe it is a type of insurance in case their diet is lacking in certain essential nutrients. Others believe it will ward off disease by boosting immunity, improving brain health, or regulating metabolism. It’s easy to see where these ideas come from: Advertisements claim wide-ranging health benefits, although most offer little or no evidence to support the claims.
But the research on the health benefits of multivitamins has been mixed at best. For example, this year, the US Preventive Services Task Force, a leading authority on preventive health care, reviewed 90 of the best studies available on supplements and vitamins, concluding that the products do not protect healthy adults including those with heart disease. Against disease, cancer, nutritional deficiency. or death from all causes.
Would research on different dosages, supplement combinations, or populations indicate a different conclusion? Well, yes — in fact, it may already be, according to a new study that focuses on memory and brain function.
Could a daily multivitamin improve brain function in older adults?
Our current options for improving brain health are limited. For example, regular exercise, optimal weight and a heart-healthy diet can improve heart health and reduce the likelihood of some types of dementia, such as dementia due to stroke. Beyond such common-sense measures, no available drugs, supplements, or treatments improve brain function over the long term, despite advertisements claiming otherwise.
That’s why researchers continue to find out whether certain foods or supplements may prove effective. In a recent study published in Alzheimer’s and DementiaMore than 2,200 volunteers aged 65 and older were randomly assigned to receive cocoa or a placebo, a multivitamin or a placebo, or both cocoa and a multivitamin for three years. The multivitamin chosen for this study was Centrum Silver, which contains 27 vitamins, minerals and other nutrients in varying amounts.
When tests of cognition were analyzed at the end of the trial, those receiving cocoa displayed no improvement. But those who were assigned to take a multivitamin had improved scores on the tests.
- overall brain function (especially in people with heart disease)
- Commemoration
- Executive functions (tasks such as planning ahead or remembering instructions).
Based on these findings, the researchers estimated that three years of multivitamin use could reduce age-related decline in brain function by up to 60%.
Notably, study participants were mostly white (89%), with an average age of 73 years, and more than half were female (60%). They were followed for only three years. However, this was a randomized, double-blind trial, which is considered the most powerful study design.
Should We All Be Taking a Multivitamin?
This study alone is not sufficient to suggest routine use of multivitamins for people of all ages. It may turn out that the benefits for older adults seen in this study were due to deficiencies in certain nutrients in some of the study participants. We don’t know if this is true or not because it was not part of the study.
Or we may find that the benefits reported here are too small to make much difference in real life, or diminish over time, or have no effect on preventing common types of dementia. And it’s hard to ignore an earlier randomized, placebo-controlled trial that was actually larger and longer-term: It found no improvement in brain function among male physicians age 65 and older who were taking a multivitamin.
But it does mean that more study is warranted. We need to understand who is most likely to benefit from multivitamin use, what dosage is optimal, and what parts of a multivitamin are most important. We also need trials that are larger, last longer and include a more diverse group of participants. And of course, there is a difference between improving cognitive function and preventing dementia. We still need to know whether conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease can be prevented with the use of multivitamins or other supplements.
Bottom-line
Claims that certain supplements can improve brain health are everywhere you look. But sound scientific evidence supporting those claims is very scarce. This is one reason this new study is important: If confirmed, it means that a safe, widely available, and affordable vitamin supplement could improve the quality of life for many millions of older people.
In the past, claims made by manufacturers of various supplements and vitamins have gone far beyond the science. Studies like this should help the science catch up and figure out which claims are valid.
