Anti-oxidant vitamins and mental performance of the elderly

A double-blind placebo controlled trial was carried out to examine the effe cts of supplementation with anti-oxidant vitamins on mental performance in the elderly. The participants were assigned to either placebo or vitamin gr oups and assessed at 4, 8 and 12 months.:Blood samples were taken to determ ine vitamin levels at these times. The results showed little effect of supp lementation on mental performance and few:associations between plasma level s of the vitamins and mental functioning. These results are in contrast to results from assessment of mood, intelligence and cognitive failure which d emonstrated beneficial effects of increased levels of vitamin C. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.