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in collaboration with
Dr Gérald Kierzek (Medical Director of Doctissimo)
Medical validation:
September 16, 2022
Could taking a daily multivitamin help slow cognitive aging? Yes, according to a study published today in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.
About 1 million people are affected by Alzheimer’s in France. The disease, which is characterized by a progressive loss of memory and certain intellectual functions, leads to irreversible brain damage. To prevent it, researchers may have found the solution: taking vitamins daily.
Cognitive decline dropped by about 60%
To reach this conclusion, the researchers recruited 2,262 people with an average age of 73 without symptoms or a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease at the start of the study.
The participants were then divided into four groups, classified according to the supplementation administered: multivitamins, cocoa extracts, multivitamins and cocoa extracts, placebo.
All took their supplement daily for three years. Tests were then carried out each year to assess their cognitive functions, and in particular the functioning of their memory.
Results ? Two years after the start of the tests, the participants who took “multivitamins” showed a marked improvement in their memory capacities and executive functions (the set of mental processes that a person implements to manage their behaviors, their thoughts and their emotions) compared to the other groups.
After two years, those who took the multivitamins showed marked improvement in memory and executive function compared to the other groups.
Taking the multivitamin also knocked down cognitive decline by around 60% – equivalent to a gain of 1.8 years. These positive effects were not irreversible: the scientists found that they “stagnated” after 24 months.
Vitamins: participants with heart problems are more receptive
The researchers also observed that taking “cocoa extracts” did not help slow cognitive aging in participants.
“Cocoa extract had no effect on global cognition. In contrast, daily multivitamin supplementation, compared to placebo, resulted in a statistically significant benefit on global cognition, and this effect was most pronounced in participants with a history of cardiovascular disease”can we read in the study.