Does Vitamin D3 Exacerbate Dementia? Is eating too much harmful to elderly patients?Neurologists Answer Controversy - Heho Health

Many elderly people are told to supplement vitamin D to prevent sun exposure and exercise.OsteoporosisHowever, a recent study by the National Institutes of Health found that “long-term use of vitamin D3 in the elderly may increase the risk of dementia”, which overturned the results of previous studies and made many people very worried.

Is vitamin D3 harmful to dementia? Why does vitamin D, thought to help neurodevelopment, exacerbate dementia? How did the mouse research mechanism of the National Institutes of Health change? “Heho Health” interviewed clinical neurologists to specifically answer this controversy.

Does vitamin D help nerve development?Does not mean effective for dementia

In the past, vitamin D was considered to help regulate the nervous system and immune system. For example, when women are pregnant, they should supplement vitamin D appropriately to avoid affecting the development of fetal brain nerves. Young children who lack vitamin D are also prone to rickets and need vitamin D supplementation. to improve. Therefore, the relationship between vitamins and the nervous system is inseparable.

Some studies have found that the vitamin D in the body is lower among the elderly and dementia patients. It is believed that in the current situation where there is no effective drug for dementia, it is believed that “supplementing more vitamin D” can be regarded as a means to alleviate dementia. It is still quite common for elderly people to take vitamin D to prevent osteoporosis, antidepressants, or neurological disorders.

Wang Shujun, director of the Neurology Center of Taipei Veterans General Hospital, pointed out that the current mainstream research onAlzheimer’s diseaseResearch on neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, etc., have found that the concentration of vitamin D in the blood of patients is low, and it is hoped that they can supplement the vitamin.

However, the cause of low vitamin D may also be related to the patient’s lack of exposure to the sun and too little exercise. Although there is a correlation between neurological diseases and low vitamin D, it cannot be proved that there is a causal relationship. Long-term bed tracking of causality in D.

Dementia is a disease of complex causes,Is it “Does vitamin D deficiency cause disease? Or disease causing vitamin D deficiency?」The causal relationship between the two has not been established so far, and the National Institutes of Health’s mouse study on intermediate exposure of vitamin D3 may aggravate the association of dementia. The clinical evidence is still insufficient, and more research and observation are needed.

Elderly people take vitamin D3 to increase the risk of dementia?

A study by the National Institutes of Health pointed out that the vitamin D receptor protein in mice should normally enter the nucleus to perform “neuroprotection” work, but in the brains of Alzheimer’s mice, the vitamin D receptor protein went “evil” Road”, selects to bind with “tumor suppressor protein p53”, and thereby promotes the apoptosis of nerve cells.

If the Alzheimer’s mice were continuously supplemented with vitamin D (600 IU/kg), the amount of vitamin D in the mice did not increase, but more amyloid proteins were formed on the brain plaques of the elderly, which aggravated brain lesions and intellectual deterioration. .

Researcher Zhuang Zhili said that vitamin D in the human body has hormonal functions, and its production must be controlled by the skin, liver, and kidney layer by layer, and the concentration cannot be changed arbitrarily. influences.

Among them, it was observed that the young people take vitamin D better than the elderly, and the use of vitamin D should be considered for the elderly and the demented due to different mechanisms. However, Wang Shujun said that in the absence of clinical trials and sufficient evidence, the original drug prescriptions and recommendations will still be maintained.

The National Institutes of Health stated that due to the increasing number of elderly osteoporosis and dialysis patients in Taiwan, they need to take vitamin D routinely. It believes that those who take related health products and high-dose vitamin D and other medical needs, in addition to strictly preventing hypercalcemia. In addition to symptoms, you should discuss with your doctor to pay special attention to whether there is a risk of dementia.

At the same time, we hope that more research and data will further clarify the factors that cause the changes in the mechanism of vitamin D in brain cells, and provide doctors with a reference for treatment planning for dementia patients or the elderly, so that people can stay away from the harm of dementia.