More than 7 million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer’s dementia, and that number is expected to rise to nearly 13 million by 2050. New research from Emory University suggests higher vitamin D supplement intake may be associated with stronger cognitive performance in adults at increased risk of dementia, according to ScienceDaily.
The study examined 54 adults who had sleep disturbances and mild cognitive impairment, or MCI, a condition that can appear before dementia. Participants who said they took at least 5,000 IU of vitamin D each day performed better on cognitive measures than those who did not take vitamin D.
Published in Sleep Medicine, the study found that people taking 5,000 IU or more daily scored more than 13% higher on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, even after researchers adjusted for other factors. Lower daily doses of vitamin D were not linked to better cognitive scores.
Researchers also looked at whether the type of vitamin D mattered. They found similar cognitive performance among participants taking vitamin D2 and those taking vitamin D3.
Victoria Pak, senior author of the study and an associate professor at Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, said the results may point to an important window for intervention when cognitive changes are beginning but brain health support may still help.
