News
Adequate vitamin C intake may be associated with longer survival of heart failure patients
16 November 2011
Low vitamin C levels may increase the risk of complications in patients with heart failure, says a new Korean study.
27 April 2012
A new study from France suggests that increased vitamin D intakes can lower the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
In the observational study, the dietary vitamin D intakes of 498 women with an average age of 79.8 who did not take vitamin D supplements were assessed using food frequency questionnaires (1). The study results showed that women with lower vitamin D intakes (50 micrograms per week) at the start of the study had a greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s after 7 years compared with women with higher intakes (59 micro-grams per week). Furthermore, the highest average intakes of vitamin D were associated with a risk reduction of Alzheimer’s of up to 77%, compared with lower intakes.
The researchers concluded that the low consumption of vitamin D-rich food may precede the onset of Alzhei-mer’s disease. Vitamin D has been linked to brain (hippocampus) protection in rodents by influencing the production and clearance of beta-amyloid proteins. The build-up of plaque from beta-amyloid deposits is associated with an increase in brain cell damage and death from oxidative stress, which is related to a loss of cognitive function and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The scientists noted that the potential brain benefits of vitamin D may also be linked to omega-3 fatty acids, present in vitamin D-rich foods, such as fish.
16 November 2011
Low vitamin C levels may increase the risk of complications in patients with heart failure, says a new Korean study.
1 December 2015
Professor Mary Ward of Ulster University was part of a recent trial in which it was shown that elderly Irish adults (60 years or more) who were deficient in 25-hydroxyvitamin D (<25 nmol/L) were most likely to have the highest levels of inflammatory cytokines when compared to those who were replete (>75 nmol/L). Raised levels of these inflammatory cytokines are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and a range of other chronic diseases.
28 August 2013
A new study from Iran reports that patients with severe multiple sclerosis have lower blood vitamin D concentrations than patients with a milder form of the disease.