Men with low blood serum levels of Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) fare worse on tests requiring rapid thinking
May 21, 2009 – Men 60 and older may think faster if they have adequate blood levels of vitamin D, according to a new European study.
The study, published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, included more than 3,100 men 40 and older in eight European cities: Florence, Italy; Leuven, Belgium, Lodz, Poland; Malmo, Sweden; Manchester, England.; Santiago de Compostela, Spain; Szeged, Hungary, and Tartu, Estonia.
The men, who were about 60 years old, on average, provided blood samples so the researchers could check their vitamin D levels. Their average vitamin D level was in the adequate range.
The men also took three tests of their visual memory, visual scanning, and speed at processing visual information.
Men in their 60s and 70s with low levels of vitamin D were the most likely participants to have low scores on the visual scanning and processing test.
