Can taking vitamin D supplements help prevent dementia?

Scientists say there may be an interesting link between vitamin D supplements and dementia.

• Researchers assessed the association between vitamin D supplementation and the incidence of dementia.
• They found that vitamin D supplementation was linked to a lower dementia incidence.
• Further studies are needed to certify the results.

Over 55 million people live with dementia worldwide, which is expected to rise to 139 million by 2050Trusted Source. There are currentlyTrusted Source no medications that can stop or reverse the condition.

Interventions that can affect dementia risk factors are being explored to slow disease progression. One such risk factor is vitamin D deficiency.

Some studies have found that vitamin D may aid the clearance of amyloid beta aggregates—one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, studies have produced conflicting results on whether vitamin D improves cognitive function.

Other studiesTrusted Source show that low vitamin D levels are linked to a greater risk of dementia and AD.

Further studying the link between vitamin D supplementation and cognitive decline could help develop preventative strategies for dementia.

Recently, researchers assessed the link between vitamin D supplementation and incident dementia. They found that vitamin D supplementation is linked to lower incidence of dementia.

The study was published in Alzheimer’s and Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease MonitoringTrusted Source.

Note: A word of caution – please discuss news like this with your primary care physician or a certificated registered nutritionist. We also make Vitamin D from sun exposure. It is also found in fortified milk, some fish, and fortified cereals.

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin and stored in the body. The consequences of overdose are: metal retardation in children, abnormal bone growth and formation, nausea, diarrhea, irritability, deposition of calcium in organs such as kidney, liver, and heart.

Toxicity is possible with long-term use of 10,000 IU daily. Judith E. Brown, Nutrition Now, 7th Edition.

Sally Feltner, MS, PhD.