ABSTRACT Objectives: To investigate the relationship between markers of vitamin B12 status and brain volume loss per year over a 5-year period in an elderly population. Methods: A prospective study of 107 community-dwelling volunteers aged 61 to 87 years without cognitive impairment at enrollment. Volunteers were assessed yearly by clinical examination, MRI scans, and cognitive […]

LEUVEN, BELGIUM. An international team of researchers have confirmed that elderly people often suffer from a deficiency of vitamins B-6, B12 and folic acid. Their investigation involved 99 healthy young people (aged 19-55), 64 healthy elderly subjects (aged 65-88), and 286 elderly hospitalized patients (aged 61-97). The researchers measured the blood concentrations of the vitamins […]

KINGSTON, CANADA. Many older people suffer from a deficiency of vitamin B12 (cobalamin). A low intake of animal protein, the use of medications to reduce stomach acid, a Helicobacter pylori infection, an inflammation of the stomach lining, and problems with the pancreas can all contribute to the development of a deficiency. Medical researchers at Queen’s […]

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA. It is becoming increasingly clear that a vitamin B12 deficiency can have serious consequences, particularly in elderly people. A vitamin B12 deficiency can be misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease), spinal cord compression, or alcoholic or diabetic peripheral neuropathy. A vitamin B12 deficiency is also associated with elevated homocysteine […]

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. It is generally assumed that vitamin B12 deficiencies are rare among people consuming a varied diet. However, there is some question whether vegetarians get enough B12 as it is not present in plants. Researchers at the Sydney Adventist Hospital have just completed a study aimed at resolving this question. Their study involved 245 […]

This is not however the end of the story. Most vegans show adequate B12 levels to make clinical deficiency unlikely but nonetheless show restricted activity of B12 related enzymes, leading to elevated homocysteine levels. Strong evidence has been gathered over the past decade that even slightly elevated homocysteine levels increase risk of heart disease and […]

DENVER, COLORADO. Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Pharmacy warn that prolonged use of acid-suppressing drugs such as cimetidine (Tagamet), ranitidine (Zantac) and omeprazole (Losec) can lead to a serious vitamin-B12 deficiency. They cite the case of a 78-year-old non-vegetarian, white woman with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) who had been taking cimetidine or […]

B12 is an important water-soluble vitamin. In contrast to other water-soluble vitamins it is not excreted quickly in the urine, but rather accumulates and is stored in the liver, kidney and other body tissues. As a result, a vitamin B12 deficiency may not manifest itself until after 5 or 6 years of a diet supplying […]

ANKARA, TURKEY. It is estimated that more than 50 per cent of adults in developed countries are infected with the Helicobacter pylori bacterium. H pylori has been implicated in stomach ulcers, indigestion (dyspepsia), gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining), stomach cancer, and MALT lymphoma. About 10-15 per cent of adults over 60 years of age […]

To be truly healthful, a diet must be best not just for individuals in isolation but must allow all six billion people to thrive and achieve a sustainable coexistence with the many other species that form the ?living earth?. From this standpoint the natural adaptation for most (possibly all) humans in the modern world is […]