How much vitamin D can boost memory, learning and decision-making in older adults, and how much is too much?
How much vitamin D can boost memory, learning and decision-making in older adults, and how much is too much?
A unique Rutgers-led study found that overweight and obese older women who took more than three times the recommended daily dose of vitamin D showed improvements in memory and learning – but also had slower reaction times. The researchers hypothesize that slower reaction times may increase the risk of falling among older people.
The researchers, whose work is in The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, used computers to assess the impact of vitamin D on cognitive function. The researchers evaluated three groups of women between 50 and 70 years old in a randomized controlled trial.
One group took the recommended daily dose of 600 international units (IU), equivalent to 15 micrograms, of vitamin D each day for a year. Another group took 2,000 IU per day and the third took 4,000. All women participated in lifestyle counseling and were encouraged to lose a modest amount of weight.
Read more at Rutgers University
Image: Vitamin D capsules. (Credit: Sue Shapses/Rutgers University-New Brunswick)
