A recent study found a surprising effect of Vitamin C that may be associated with improved brain health with age.
For the study, scientists studied over 2,000 adults over the age of 64, in contrast to Vitamin C levels in their blood plasma to MRI scans of their brains.
Researchers found that people with reduced levels of Vitamin C have lower gray matter volume present inside their brain, showing weaker connectivity in the complex network of the organ, default mode network.
The default mode network is a collection of regions involved in functions including autobiographical memory, focus and attention.
After accounting for factors that can influence brain health, including age, physical activity and education level, those links remained.
The study coauthor Tomohiro Shintaku from the Graduate School of Medicine at Hirosaki University in Japan stated, "This finding generates the exciting hypothesis that a diet rich in vitamin C might play a supportive role in maintaining brain health and mitigating age-related cognitive decline in older adults."
While the results suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin C levels could help support healthy brain aging, the study does not prove cause and effect.
Researchers stressed the need for more studies to confirm their findings.
