Alzheimer's and Cognitive Decline Prevention with Tocopherols

Category: Aging

In previous studies Vitamin E was found to have a protective effect against the development of Alzheimer's disease. It was also found to slow cognitive decline. However there have been conflicting results from follow up studies that say there is no protective effect.

Most supplemental Vitamin E comes in the form of alpha-tocopherol. In nature Vitamin E exists in several forms of tocopherols and tocotrienols. Most foods that are high in Vitamin E contain a mixture of the various forms. Previous studies have found a protective effect from Vitamin E on Alzheimer's and cognitive decline using alpha-tocopherol; the form which is also provided in most supplements.

A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reviewed the effects of the various forms of Vitamin E, both tocopherols and tocotrienols, on Alzheimer's and cognitive decline. This was a long-term observational study that measured Vitamin E intake from dietary sources, supplementation with single Vitamin E forms, and supplementation with a mixture of Vitamin E forms. The study had over 1000 participants. The outcome variables include cognitive assessment score, incidence of Alzheimer's disease, and serum levels of Vitamin E and fatty acids.

The study found that higher intakes of Vitamin E from food sources as well as supplementation provided a protective effect against Alzheimer's. Individuals in the study who had a Vitamin E intake from more than one form had a greater benefit and lower cognitive decline compared to intake of alpha-tocopherol alone.

The authors suggest that various forms of Vitamin E, versus the alpha tocopherol form alone are responsible for the protective effects against developing Alzheimer's. They also postulated that a possible reason previous studies found no protective effect might have been due to lack of variation in the forms of Vitamin E ingested.

Posted by Kristopher Foster on January 19, 2006 05:49 PM