News
Increased intakes of vitamin B6 may reduce lung cancer risk
17 June 2010
Higher blood levels of vitamin B6 may reduce the risk of lung cancer by about 50 per cent, says a new French study.
26 April 2013
Increased intakes of docosahexaenoic acid may improve memory and reaction times among young adults, says a new study from New Zealand.
The randomized controlled trial measured the cognitive performance of 176 healthy adults (mean age = 33.4 years) who received 1.16 g docosahexaenoic acid (DHA in fish oil) per day or a placebo for 6 months (1). The study results showed that participants who supplemented with DHA—particularly those whose habitual diets were low in the omega-3 fatty acid—showed significantly improved reaction times (how fast you think) for working memory (e.g., “Where did I just put my keys?”) and episodic memory (e.g., “Where was I yesterday?”) compared to the placebo group. The effect of DHA on cognitive function was sex-dependent: For example, male participants showed a positive effect of DHA on working memory reaction time (i.e., no effect in women), whereas in female participants, DHA affected episodic memory accuracy (not just reaction time), which was not the case for men. No effect of DHA supplementation was detected on measures of attention or processing speed.
The researchers commented that this would be the first study to show that DHA supplementation improves memory and reaction times for memory among healthy young adults, as most studies examining the effect of DHA on cognitive performance focused on preventing cognitive decline in ageing. DHA is the dominant long-chain omega-3 fatty acid in the brain, where it performs structural functions and influences numerous neuronal and glial cell processes (2). DHA has been shown to accumulate in areas of the brain involved in memory and attention.
17 June 2010
Higher blood levels of vitamin B6 may reduce the risk of lung cancer by about 50 per cent, says a new French study.
22 April 2013
According to a new study, patients with Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment have lower blood vitamin E concentrations than people with normal cognitive functioning. Measuring vitamin E levels may therefore be of use when classifying and predicting the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s.
1 July 2014
It has long been known that vitamin K, which is involved as a coenzyme in the production of coagulation factors, is essential to the regulation of blood coagulation. But vitamin K also fulfils an important role in the activation of certain enzymes which, together with vitamin D, regulate metabolism and can combat the hardening of soft tissues such as blood vessels and help slow bone demineralization. In recent years interest in this vitamin has grown considerably following the discovery of other potentially health-promoting properties. Attention centers on research into the function of vitamin-K-dependent enzymes (Gla proteins), which are found in bones and teeth as well as in blood vessel linings, the brain and other soft tissues, where they appear to regulate cell division and cell differentiation, among other things. Studies indicate that a sufficient intake of vitamin K could help prevent the occurrence of atherosclerosis, osteoporosis, insulin resistance and inflammation of the joints, and above all could protect against the age-related loss of cognitive abilities.