Dementia, a neurodegenerative brain disease, is one of the most feared diseases of the elderly. Because there is currently no way to complete it. A recent study found that vitamin D deficiency is a risk factor for dementia. Surprisingly, it has been shown that taking vitamin D and maintaining a certain level can reduce the risk of developing dementia.
Researchers at the University of South Australia Precision Health Center analyzed genetic analysis data from 294,514 UK Biobanks to determine the causal relationship between blood vitamin D levels and dementia. The results showed that people with vitamin D blood levels of 25 nmol/L had a 54% higher risk of dementia than those with 50 nmol/L.
Conversely, can vitamin D supplementation prevent dementia? Raising the vitamin D blood level from 25 nmol/L to 50 nmol/L could prevent 17% of dementia patients. People with vitamin D deficiency had smaller brains and a higher risk of dementia and stroke. This suggests that there is a genetic causal relationship between vitamin D deficiency and dementia.
The results of this study were published in ‘The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition’.
“How Vitamin D Protects Brain Health”
Pharmacist Jeong-seok Oh explained three biological mechanisms by which vitamin D protects brain health.
First, vitamin D protects the brain by inhibiting inflammatory neurovascular damage, which is common in Alzheimer’s dementia.
Second, there is a vitamin D receptor in the hippocampus, which is responsible for brain memory, and vitamin D promotes the growth and maturation of nerve cells through the function of a neurosteroid.
Finally, vitamin D reduces blood clots, making blood vessels healthy. Vitamin D also maintains the smooth regulation of the renin-angiotensin system, which regulates blood pressure in our body.
Then, pharmacist Oh Jeong-seok said, “When vitamin D is sufficient in our body, it helps brain health, especially dementia.”
“The situation of vitamin D deficiency in Korea is serious”
For health, it is recommended that the blood level of vitamin D be maintained at least 50 nmol/L. The researchers found that 31 per cent of Australian adults do not meet this criterion. Vitamin D deficiency is not unique to Australia. Vitamin D deficiency is becoming more prominent all over the world, and especially in Korea, compared to other countries, vitamin D intake is insufficient in all age groups.
According to statistics from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 93% of Koreans have a vitamin deficiency, and vitamin D deficiency is the most serious among them. According to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, vitamin D levels in Koreans are declining every year. The Korean Nutrition Society recommends a daily intake of 400 IU of vitamin D. However, in order to maintain vitamin D above 50 nmol/L, it is recommended to consume 1,000 to 2,000 IU per day.
Vitamin D can be supplemented through sunlight, food, and supplements. Foods high in vitamin D include fish such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel, nuts, and dairy products. If it is difficult to supplement with food every day, eating it as a health functional food or nutritional supplement is one way.
Help = Pharmacist Oh Jeong-seok