B vitamins & the brain.High doses of vitamins B-6 and B-12 and folic acid folic acid: see coenzyme; vitamin. folic acid or folate Organic compound essential to animal growth and health and needed by bacteria as a growth factor. may have no impact on memory or other cognitive functions in healthy older people, as earlier, less rigorous studies had suggested. Researchers gave either a daily placebo or a supplement with folic acid (1,000 mcg), vitamin B-6 (10 mg), and vitamin B-12 (500 mcg) to 276 healthy men and women aged 65 or older. After two years, there was no difference in eight tests of memory, learning, or reasoning. What to do: Don't bother taking high doses of vitamins to boost your memory. But it's worth taking a multivitamin mul·ti·vi·ta·min adj. Containing many vitamins. n. A preparation containing many vitamins. multivitamin with a day's worth of B vitamins B vitamins This family of vitamins consists of thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pantothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), biotin, folic acid (B9), and cobalamin (B12). to avoid a deficiency. It's especially important for premenopausal pre·me·no·paus·al adj. Of or relating to the years or the stage of life immediately before the onset of menopause. premenopausal adjective women to take a multi with a day's worth of folic acid (400 mcg), because the B vitamin can prevent spina bifida and other neural tube birth defects that can occur before a woman knows that she is pregnant. N. Engl. J. Med. 354: 2764, 2817, 2006. |
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