Vitamin C and E, like all the others, are necessary for your body to function well. There is evidence that diet has an influence on Alzheimer’s. However, there is no consensus among human studies on whether supplements can help, so making sure you eat a balanced diet may be the best thing to do. This consensus is based on 2 experts answers from this question: Do vitamin C&E supplements help prevent Alzheimer’s?
Scurvy, a disease caused by vitamin C deficiency, is now rare in the developed world. However, this has not always been so and it was fairly common amongst sailors for centuries. During the expansion of the British Empire and in subsequent wars, the disease was a deadly enemy for sailors in the Royal Navy and the merchant navy alike. The illness was brought on by lack of fresh fruit and vegetables onboard and its most obvious symptom was gum disease. Interestingly though, it also seemed more common in people with previous mental disorders.
Fast forward a couple of centuries, and some will swear that vitamin C keeps you away from dementia. Is this true? Will an extra glass of lemon juice do the job, or do you need supplements? Can we treat dementia patients with some sort of vitamin jab? Here’s the science.
What does the evidence say?
There has been a lot of research looking at whether and how diet can affect Alzheimer’s – specifically vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid), which is a powerful antioxidant, and one we can only get through our diet. By trapping free radicals, it is thought to prevent neuroinflammation and perhaps also the buildup of toxic deposits that occurs in the Alzheimer’s brain. Quite similarly, vitamin E also has an antioxidant role and could indirectly control clearance of these deposits. Although there is some evidence that vitamins can alter these brain deposits in mouse strains mimicking Alzheimer’s, results from research done on humans are much less convincing.
A 2004 study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins did suggest that taking supplements of vitamins E and C regularly could reduce your risk of getting Alzheimer’s. To reach that conclusion, they took a large group of volunteers, asked them about their vitamin intake and observed whether those who were taking vitamin supplements developed dementia less often than the rest – which they did.
However, in another study looking at 16,000 older women, vitamin C was not found to be protective and indeed intake of vitamin C or E were not linked to cognitive ability in the long run. Separately, a trial treating patients with mild cognitive deficits with vitamin E found no benefit either, so maybe don’t look for vitamins for therapy. Even the authors of the 2004 paper admitted that the protective effects of antioxidants should rather be interpreted as part of a preventive strategy (as opposed to being useful for therapy).
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🍊How do vitamin C and E contribute to the body's antioxidant defense mechanisms? 🍽How do diet and vitamin intake influence the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease? 🕵️♂️Do current studies provide strong evidence that vitamin C and E supplements prevent Alzheimer's disease?Supplements remain controversial
Aware that the evidence is not always strong and pressed by regulators, supplement producers are strikingly vague when it comes to describing the properties of their products. If you go and search for vitamin C tablets online, you will likely see some variation of ‘vitamin C contributes to normal immune function, normal psychological function and normal energy-yielding metabolism’. That does not say much though – just about anything could contribute to normal body functions. Importantly, it does not say whether taking the supplement in the bottle improves any of those versus not taking it.
Even when studies are done to look at this, they tend to lack appropriate controls. For instance, taking collagen supplements seems better than not – but we must not compare them with nothing, but with an alternative. Sticking to this example, we should really be comparing whether people taking a certain amount of collagen would be better off than people taking the same amount of protein from other sources such as eggs or chickpeas (spoiler alert: they would not).
How about dosage? Remember, the conclusion from that 2004 study was that vitamins E and C could be protective against Alzheimer’s when taken together, but in the high doses present in supplements. This tells us nothing about whether a diet that is rich in these vitamins would be helpful, because vitamin supplements typically contain large doses that are not comparable to dietary levels. But then again, is that a good thing?
Precisely because of their high doses, supplements could come with side effects. For instance, it may not always be good to remove free radicals. Our organs keep a finely tuned balance of oxidants and antioxidants, and getting rid of it could do more harm than good. While free radicals have been associated with neuroinflammation and aging, they are also vital for our immune system to respond to threats – be it pathogens or tumor cells. Perhaps due to this, some supplements have been shown to slightly increase risk of cancer or heart disease.
In summary, vitamins are not just good for you but necessary, when at the right dose. Current consensus seems to be that supplements are helpful for specific groups of people but not necessarily advised for the whole population at all times – and they should always be used under supervision. Otherwise, nutrition experts across the board agree that a well balanced diet should be enough to keep us healthy. For what it’s worth, there is plenty of vitamin E in salmon and almonds, and vitamin C rich foods include peppers, broccoli or oranges.
TAKEAWAY: The link between vitamin supplements and dementia is weak and supplements may have side effects. While researchers get a clearer view on this, why not keep a healthy diet with lots of fruit and veg?
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🧐Is there a consensus among researchers that vitamin supplements are effective in preventing dementia? 👩🏻💻Do some studies show that vitamin supplements might increase the risk of certain diseases? 🤔What are the recommended dietary sources of vitamins C and E for maintaining overall health? ⚡Can excessive intake of vitamin supplements increase the risk of cancer or heart disease? 😒What are the potential side effects of taking high doses of vitamin supplements?