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Related Experiment Videos

Plasma carotenoids and tocopherols and cognitive function: a prospective study.

Jae Hee Kang1, Francine Grodstein

  • 1Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. nhjhk@channing.harvard.edu

Neurobiology of Aging
|April 17, 2007
PubMed
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Higher plasma antioxidant levels, including carotenoids and tocopherols, were not associated with better cognitive function or slower cognitive decline in older women. This study examined 858 women aged 70+ from the Nurses' Health Study.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Nutritional Science
  • Gerontology

Background:

  • The brain's high metabolic activity makes it vulnerable to oxidative stress.
  • Plasma antioxidants, such as carotenoids and tocopherols, are hypothesized to protect against such damage.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between plasma concentrations of carotenoids and tocopherols and cognitive function in older women.
  • To determine if higher antioxidant levels are linked to better initial cognitive performance or slower cognitive decline.

Main Methods:

  • Plasma carotenoids and tocopherols were measured in 858 female participants (aged 70+) of the Nurses' Health Study.
  • Cognitive function was assessed via telephone at baseline and two subsequent 2-year intervals.
  • Linear regression and longitudinal models were used to analyze cognitive performance and decline in relation to antioxidant quartiles.

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Main Results:

  • No significant association was found between higher plasma carotenoid or tocopherol levels and initial cognitive performance.
  • Higher antioxidant levels were not associated with a slower rate of cognitive decline over the 4-year follow-up period.
  • Individual antioxidants also showed no significant relationship with cognitive outcomes.

Conclusions:

  • Total plasma carotenoids and tocopherols are not related to cognitive function or cognitive decline in elderly women.
  • These findings suggest that circulating levels of these specific antioxidants may not play a protective role in maintaining cognition in this population.