Fight Dementia Symptoms with Top Minerals and Vitamins for Memory

Nearly 10 million seniors receive a dementia diagnosis each year, ushering in new challenges and concerns for their families. As caregivers evaluate treatment, strive to preserve quality of life, and hope to stave off symptoms, the connection between diet and dementia serves as a helpful entry point.

Recommended foods to prevent dementia often include robust, well-researched vitamins and minerals. These vitamins that help with memory can be tasty and easy to find — chances are some of your senior loved one’s favorite foods already contain these much-needed nutrients.

Vitamin C boosts brain cognition

Vitamin C helps fight more than just the common cold. Researchers at the National Institute of Integrative Medicine found a link between this brain-boosting vitamin and high levels of cognition in their 2017 study, which compared those with Alzheimer’s disease to a control group without memory conditions. In most cases, researchers observed a greater vitamin C deficiency in participants with Alzheimer’s. Specifically, vitamin C helps neurotransmitters in the brain function properly and regulates enzymes.

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Pack your plate with these vitamin C foods

• A ½ cup serving of red peppers provides 106% of the recommended daily value for vitamin C. Green peppers provide 67%.
• Fruits like oranges, kiwi, and strawberries boast more than half the vitamin C seniors need.
• Enjoy your fruit in juice form. Drink up vitamin C in orange juice, grapefruit juice, or tomato juice.
• Grab something green, like broccoli or cabbage.

Brain vitamins B6 and B12 curb mental decline

Vitamins B6 and B12 team up as some of the best vitamins for memory. A 2019 study published in Clinical Epigenetics found that memory-deteriorating genes can become more active due to a lack of these brain vitamins, which help repress cognitive decline.

Savor these sources of vitamins B6 and B12

• Fish: Tuna has 53% of the vitamin B6 needed each day, while clams, trout, and salmon have more than 100% of the necessary vitamin B12.
• Don’t skip breakfast. Cereal, yogurt, a toaster waffle, or an egg can start your day with an abundance of vitamin B.
• Dairy: Cottage cheese has vitamin B6, and Swiss cheese supplies B12. Yogurt and milk are also good choices.

Vitamin D deficiency increases dementia risk

Vitamin D deficiency counts as a risk factor for Alzheimer’s and dementia, asserts 2019 research in the leading publication BMC Neurology. This comprehensive review states that severe vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of dementia by 48%, while the likelihood of having Alzheimer’s climbs 51%. Counteract these troubling statistics by getting enough vitamin D, one of the best vitamins for memory.

Soak up vitamin D

• Sunshine is one of the best natural sources of vitamin D. Take an afternoon walk, or invest in a UV lamp for colder months.
• One tablespoon of cod liver oil supplements 170% of daily vitamin D.
• Sliced, white mushrooms make up half of the needed vitamin D intake.

Phosphatidylcholine benefits include improving memory

The mineral phosphatidylcholine can drastically reduce cognitive decline, research suggests. This link in diet and dementia comes from a 2019 study that analyzed 2,500 men in Finland. The results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, show a 28% lower chance of dementia in men who consumed high amounts of phosphatidylcholine. A wide range of research validates this finding in women, as well.

Increase your phosphatidylcholine intake

• Fry three ounces of beef liver in a pan for 65% of daily phosphatidylcholine benefits.
• A large, boiled egg accounts for 27% of this mineral’s recommended intake.
• Roast chicken breast or soybeans
• Beef isn’t always bad. In fact, it represents 13% of your needed phosphatidylcholine.
• Go for grains, like wheat germ and quinoa.

These brain vitamins and minerals are common recommendations for most seniors. For help addressing specific dietary concerns, consider consulting a dietitian or your doctor.

Sources:

Chai, Bingyan et al. “Vitamin D deficiency as a risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease: an updated meta-analysis.” https://bmcneurol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12883-019-1500-6

National Institutes of Health. “Dietary Supplement Fact Sheets.” https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/list-all/

Travica et al. “Vitamin C Status and Cognitive Function: A Systematic Review.” https://researchbank.swinburne.edu.au/file/432fba75-a949-445d-af0e-577de4281112/1/2017-travica-vitamin_c_status.pdf

World Health Organization. “Dementia.” https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dementia