One study that holds promise appeared earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Dr. Martha Morris of the Rush Institute for Healthy Aging led a team that looked at antioxidants, specifically vitamin E and its protective effects against Alzheimer’s. More than 800 people 65 years and older participated in the study. All were free from dementia at the start and were followed for an average of 3.9 years. At the halfway point, participants completed a questionnaire that asked in detail the kinds and quantities of foods they had consumed during the previous year. The findings: by the end of the study, 131 participants had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. However, those who took the most vitamin E (11.4 international units daily) had a 67 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s compared to those who had the lowest consumption (6.2 IU/d). A governmental scientific advisory panel recommends a daily intake of 22 units.
Some researchers have noted that when vitamin E is taken in the form of a supplement rather than through the diet, it doesn’t show the protective effect against Alzheimer’s. The authors of the study believe that one reason dietary vitamin E-found in foods like asparagus, wheat germ, sunflower seeds, oil, almonds, tomatoes and leafy green vegetables like spinach–may be protective is related to the different forms of the vitamin. Most of the supplemental vitamin E consists of alpha tocopherol, while the vitamins in foods are richer in gamma tocopherol. The chemicals (free radicals) that are dangerous to our health are destroyed differently depending on the type of tocopherol that’s present.
The idea that the antioxidant vitamin E can protect our health is nothing new and has encouraged a tremendous amount of research over the last few years. What is new, however, is this idea that it can actually be protective against Alzheimer’s. While this news appears to be promising, no specific recommendations should be made based on this preliminary evidence. In other words, don’t rush out and start ingesting large amounts of vitamin E to prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s in your advanced years. Little is known about the safety, effectiveness and dosages of these various antioxidants. In fact, some studies have shown that consuming vitamin E in excessively high doses can increase the risk of bleeding and harmful interactions with other medications.
Researchers around the country are involved in several well-funded clinical trials actually putting vitamin E to the test to see if this believed protection against Alzheimer’s is actually observed in a real-life setting. Researchers are not only looking at vitamin E, but its effect when combined with other agents such as beta-carotene, vitamin C and aspirin. While the definitive answers are not yet here, one thing is certain: keeping a healthy intake of vitamins and eating a balanced diet is a great insurance policy against disease.
