High dietary intake of vitamin D has been associated with a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease among older women, according to a new study published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Science. Operating on the hypothesis that low vitamin D levels have been linked to cognitive decline among older adults, the study authors said their intention was to examine whether dietary intake of vitamin D could be a predictor of the onset of dementia like Alzheimer’s disease.
 
Researchers, led by Cédric Annweiler of Université Nantes-Angers-Le Mans, France, studied 498 women aged 75 and older who did not take vitamin D supplements. The women were divided into three groups – no dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia within seven years according to the onset of dementia. The participants’ baseline dietary intake of vitamin D was estimated based on dietary information from a self-administered food frequency questionnaire.
 
The researchers found that the women who had highest dietary intake levels of vitamin D were 77% less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in seven years, compared to those who had the had lower dietary vitamin D intakes.