Vitamin D: children – from rickets, old people – from dementia

Tatiana Bateneva, "News of Science"

Vitamin D, which was previously considered the main lifesaver from rickets and osteoporosis, is discovering new talents. It turns out that it is also able to prevent senile dementia, from which countries with high life expectancy are increasingly suffering.

The trick is not to live long. And the point is that this long life does not become a punishment for the longest-lived person and a burden for others. That's why in rich countries hundreds, if not thousands, of scientists are looking for cures for the ailments of the "third age" – Alzheimer's disease and just senile dementia, that is, dementia.

It turns out that the old people can be saved from this unpleasant condition by the same fish oil that used to be fed to children from rickets. The vitamin D contained in it is formed in the human skin and by itself – it is enough just to be in the sun regularly. But with age, this ability decreases. This conclusion was reached by American and British scientists from the Universities of Michigan and Cambridge, who analyzed the condition of two thousand people 65 years and older.

Vitamin D regulates the absorption of calcium in our body and its delivery to the bones. In children, it is responsible for the formation of the skeleton. But this process is complicated. First, the vitamin is stored in the liver, there it turns into another substance, from there it is delivered to the kidneys. And only when the parathyroid gland sends a signal that there is not enough calcium in the blood, it turns again and enters the blood from the kidneys, stimulating the absorption of calcium from food. Somewhere along this secret pathway, vitamin D seems to affect brain function as well.

The study showed that the elderly, in whose body there was an increased content of vitamin D, are half as susceptible to impaired thinking processes. And when it is not enough, the probability of deterioration of attention and memory is also twice as high.

Vitamin D is found in fatty fish, eggs and artificially enriched foods. But many elderly people do not eat enough of this. British scientists believe that simply distributing vitamin D capsules can significantly reduce the number of cases of senile dementia. However, you can not overdo it with it – an excess of solar vitamin causes severe poisoning. If you decide to protect yourself from coming old age in advance, strictly follow the recommended doses – for children and adults under 50, no more than 10 mcg (400 IU) per day, after 51 – no more than 5 mcg (200 IU).

Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru29.01.2009