Harvard researchers report in the Archives of Internal Medicine that taking a vitamin E supplement does not slow age-related cognitive decline.
In the randomized, double-blind study, 6300 women were assigned to receive either a 600 IU vitamin E supplement every other day for ten years or a placebo pill.
The study found that after ten years of intervention and four years of follow up, there was no significant difference between the two groups of women.
Despite the overall findings researchers did report that women who started the study with low levels of vitamin E who took the supplement did experience slightly slower cognitive decline, compared to women with similar vitamin E levels who were assigned to the placebo.
Further studies are needed to determine if there is any protective effect from vitamin E and other antioxidants on cognitive decline.
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