Ingelheim (ots) – More than 50 million people worldwide are currently living with dementia – by 2025 the number of those affected will probably even triple (Gauthier et al., 2021). Given the large number of people affected, the desire and need to develop an effective medical treatment is of immense importance. In order to slow down the progression of the disease, options for interventions based on modifiable risk factors are being investigated. Vitamin D deficiency may be just such a modifiable risk factor – and given its global prevalence of up to 1 billion sufferers – with enormous potential (Cashman et al., 2016; Sizar et al., 2021).
Vitamin D has been shown to be involved in the breakdown of beta amyloid aggregates (Aß), a central cause of Alzheimer’s disease, and has neuroprotective effects against excessive phosphorylation of tau proteins, another hallmark of Alzheimer’s (Mizwicki et al., 2012; Lin et al., 2016). A meta-analysis from more than 10 cohort studies by Shen already showed in 2015 that low vitamin D levels are associated with an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. A vitamin D level of less than 50 nmol/l resulted in a 21% higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s compared to a vitamin D level above 50 nmol/l. It can be assumed that this value would have been even higher if it had been compared with good vitamin D levels of over 75 nmol/l, but this was not done in the study due to a lack of data.
A new study now gives reason to hope that the factor of vitamin D supplementation alone could be an important component in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.
The recently published large prospective cohort study with more than 12,000 participants showed that people who supplemented with vitamin D were on average 40% less likely to develop dementia than those who did not supplement with vitamin D. “The study results indicate that starting supplementation early, i.e. before the first signs of cognitive decline appear, is beneficial.” According to the study’s lead researcher, Zahinoor Ismail of the University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute.
The study followed 12,388 adult participants, who had an average age of 71 years and had normal or only slightly impaired cognitive function at baseline, over a period of 10 years. Of these, 37% were taking a vitamin D supplement. Among those who supplemented with vitamin D were more women and those with a higher level of education. Depression and mild cognitive disorders were more common in the group not taking vitamin D. Over the 10 years, about 22% of the participants developed dementia – 75% of them had not taken any vitamin D supplements. Eighty-four percent of the vitamin D group participants were dementia-free over a 5-year period, compared to 68% in the group not taking a vitamin D supplement.
After statistically adjusting data for age, gender, education, race, cognition, depression, and APOE4 status, vitamin D intake was associated with a 40% lower risk of dementia compared to no vitamin D supplementation. Women with normal cognitive function benefited most from the effect.
The preventive effect of the supplementation was independent of the dosage form of vitamin D (calcium vitamin D, cholecalciferol, ergocalciferol).
However, the promising study also has some limitations, as the researchers themselves noted: For example, there was no data on the duration of vitamin D intake or the initial levels of the sun vitamin. The role of baseline levels in preventing cognitive dysfunction has also not been adequately investigated to date. These parameters should be considered more closely in future clinical studies.
In view of the ever-growing number of those affected, prevention and even delaying the progression of the disease are already of great importance, according to study co-author Byron Creese.
A vitamin D deficiency should not only be compensated to reduce the risk of dementia, but also to reduce the risk of cancer and improve muscle and bone status. A deficiency promotes muscle weakness and falls in old age.
More press releases from Dr. Jacobs Institute on this topic:
– Vitamin D supplementation reduces the risk of acute respiratory diseases in children and adults by up to 70% (https://www.presseportal.de/pm/113214/5414508) – New major COVID-19 study from Israel: 10-fold increased risk of death with vitamin D deficiency prior to infection (https://www.presseportal.de/pm/113214/5149017) – vitamin K as a versatile regulator of blood coagulation, vitamin D as an immune modulator (https://www.presseportal. de/pm/113214/5104865) – COVID-19 and other respiratory infections in children Studies confirm that vitamin D and other micronutrients are effective against Corona & Co (https://www.presseportal.de/pm/113214/5089185) – Can vitamin D protect against COVID-19, cancer and other diseases? Rational decision-making aid in the jungle of opinions and evidence (https://drjacobsinstitut.de/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/PM-Vitamin-D-210323.pdf)
Vitamins D, E, K, A for resistance and health by Dr. medical LM Jacob
Read the guide by Dr. medical LM Jacob on why the fat-soluble vitamins are so important to our health. In addition to vitamin D, vitamins E, K and A are also of central importance for the immune system, cardiovascular system, bones, muscles, blood clotting and much more. They also play a role in the prevention of numerous diseases such as respiratory diseases, COVID-19, cancer, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases.
Vitamins D, E, K, A for resistance and health by Dr. medical LM Jacob. 2nd, expanded edition, 116 pages, nutricaMEDia Verlag, ISBN 978-3982387970, EUR 6.99 at www.amazon.de; E-book (epub): ISBN 9783982387925, EUR 0.99
dr Jacob’s Institute
the dr Jacobs Institute for Complementary Medical Research has set itself the goal of scientifically clarifying holistic relationships in nutritional science, naturopathy and empirical medicine and improving effective therapies.
Literature:
– Cashman KD, Dowling KG, Skrabakova Z, et al. (2016): Vitamin D deficiency in Europe: pandemic? Am J Clin Nutr. 103(4):1033-1044. – Gauthier S, Rosa-Neto P, Morais JA, Webster C. (2021): World Alzheimer Report 2021: Journey Through the Diagnosis of Dementia. Alzheimer’s Disease International. – Ghahremani M, Smith EE, Chen HY, Creese B, Goodarzi Z, Ismai Z (2023): Vitamin D supplementation and incident dementia: Effects of sex, APOE, and baseline cognitive status. Alz Dement Diagn Assess Dis Monit. Published online March 1st. – Mizwicki MT, MenegazD, Zhang J, et al. (2012): Genomic and nongenomic signaling induced by 1alpha,25(OH)2-vitamin D3 promotes the recovery of amyloid-beta phagocytosis by Alzheimer’s disease macrophages. J Alzheimer’s Dis.29(1):51-62. – Lin CI, Chang YC, Kao NJ, Lee WJ, Cross TW, Lin SH. (2020): 1,25(OH)2D3 alleviates Abeta(25-35)-induced tau hyperphosphorylation, excessive reactive oxygen species, and apoptosis through interplay with glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor signaling in SH-SY5Y cells. Int J Mol Sci. 21(12):4215. – Shen L, Ji HF. 820159. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia: evidence from meta-analysis. Nutr J.14:76. – Sizar O, Khare S, Goyal A, Bansal P, Givler A (2021): Vitamin D Deficiency. StatPearls..
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