Folate & Alzheimer’s (2007)
This study investigated folate & Alzheimer’s. Folate helps the body to process homocysteine, which is associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke, and may also increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers studied the diets of 965 people age 65 and older who did not have dementia when the six-year study began.
Results demonstrated 192 cases of incident AD. The highest quartile of total folate intake was related to a lower risk of AD (hazard ratio, 0.5; 95% confidence interval, 0.3-0.9; P=.02 for trend) after adjustment for age, sex, education, ethnic group, the epsilon4 allele of apolipoprotein E, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, current smoking, heart disease, stroke, and vitamin B6 and B12 levels. Vitamin B6 and B12 levels were not related to the risk of AD.
Conclusions: Higher folate intake may decrease the risk of AD independent of other risk factors and levels of vitamins B6 and B12. These results require confirmation with clinical trials.
Luchsinger et al., ‘Relation of higher folate intake to lower risk of Alzheimer disease in the elderly’, Arch Neurol.;64(1):86-92, 2007