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Multivitamin supplementation improves memory in older adults: A randomized clinical trial
For older people, maintaining cognitive function is crucial, yet there are presently few efficient methods to prevent cognitive decline. Supplementing with multivitamins is utilized to improve overall health; however, it is unknown if this will positively impact cognition as people age. In this study by Yeung et al. (2023), the authors investigated how daily multivitamin/multimineral intake affects older persons’ cognition. 3562 senior citizens participated in the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study Web (COSMOS-Web) ancillary study. For three years, participants were randomized to receive a daily multivitamin supplement (Centrum Silver) or a placebo, and they were assessed every year using a suite of online neuropsychological assessments. After one year of intervention, the primary outcome was episodic memory changes, operationally defined as instant recall performance on the ModRey test. In addition, the study’s secondary outcome included evaluating changes in executive function and novel object identification on neuropsychological tests during a 3-year period, as well as changes in episodic memory over the same period. Analysis of the results revealed that participants randomly allocated to multivitamin supplementation had substantially improved ModRey instantaneous recall at one year and over the course of the average follow-up of 3 years, compared to placebo-assigned participants. Supplementing with multivitamins showed no notable influence on secondary study outcomes. The authors conclude that the effect of the multivitamin intervention enhanced memory performance above placebo by the equivalent of 3.1 years of age-related memory change, based on a cross-sectional examination of the connection between age and performance on the ModRey. In comparison to a placebo, daily multivitamin intake enhances cognition in older persons. Supplementing with multivitamins shows promise as a secure and practical method of preserving cognitive health as people age. [NPID: Multivitamins, cognition, aging, remote testing, clinical trial, diet]
Year: 2023
