Hanyang Med Rev.  2014 May;34(2):53-59. 10.7599/hmr.2014.34.2.53.

Mild Cognitive Impairment and Nutrition in Old Adults

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Foods and Nutrition, College of Natural Sciences, Dongduk Women's University, Seoul, Korea. yjyang@dongduk.ac.kr

Abstract

As the number of elderly in Korea is growing, the prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia are increasing. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a transitional state between the cognitive changes of normal aging and dementia. As for the prevention of MCI and dementia, vascular risk factor control, physical activity, social engagement, recognition of depression and high quality diet are suggested. Many epidemiologic studies have reported that inadequate levels of folate, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6 increase the risk of MCI. Elevated plasma homocysteine, which is biochemically associated with low status of B vitamins, similarly increased the risk of MCI. However, B vitamin supplementation studies have not demonstrated a protective or therapeutic cognitive benefit. Oxidative stress seems to play a key role in the development of cognitive impairment, thus, dietary and plasma antioxidants have been studied to investigate the effects on MCI, but the results are inconclusive. Diet quality has been reported to be associated with MCI. In particular, Mediterranean diet has been proposed to provide benefits on cognitive decline, but results are inconsistent. Further studies are warranted to determine the association between nutritional status or diet quality and MCI.

Keyword

Mild Cognitive Impairment; Vitamin B Complex; Antioxidants; Diet Therapy

MeSH Terms

Adult*
Aged
Aging
Antioxidants
Dementia
Dementia, Vascular
Depression
Diet
Diet Therapy
Diet, Mediterranean
Folic Acid
Homocysteine
Humans
Korea
Mild Cognitive Impairment*
Motor Activity
Nutritional Status
Oxidative Stress
Plasma
Prevalence
Risk Factors
Vitamin B 12
Vitamin B 6
Vitamin B Complex
Vitamins
Antioxidants
Folic Acid
Homocysteine
Vitamin B 12
Vitamin B 6
Vitamin B Complex
Vitamins

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Homocysteine metabolism in man and animals. Enzyme reactions that are regulated by S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) are indicated by large arrows: closed arrow indicates inhibition, open arrow indicates activation. Enzymes: 1, N-5-methyltetrahydrofolate: homocysteine methyltransferase; 2, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase; 3, betaine: homocysteine methyltransferase; 4, choline dehydrogenase; 5, cystathionine/3-synthase; 6, -y-cystathionase. THF, tetrahydrofolate; PLP, pyridoxal-5'-phosphate. Ref 5 with permission from American Society for Nutrition.


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