Low Vitamin D Associated With Dementia

Sacramento, CA—Researchers at the UC Davis Alzheimer’s Disease Center have found that vitamin D insufficiency among the elderly is highly correlated with accelerated cognitive decline and impaired performance, particularly in domains such as memory loss that are associated with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. In the longitudinal study, individuals with low vitamin D declined at a rate three times faster than those with adequate vitamin D levels. These findings amplify the importance of identifying vitamin D deficiency among the elderly, particularly in high-risk groups such as African Americans and Hispanics, who are less able to absorb the vitamin from sunshine. Results have been published online in JAMA Neurology.

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