[The effect of vitamin administration on mental development in mentally retarded children]

Vitamin administration in severely mentally retarded children in order to improve their IQ and other forms of personality development has not such a favourable effect as in children with minor cerebral dysfunction. The author administered vitamins A, B, C, D and E to 18 imbecile children. As compared with a control group not given vitamins, no marked changes were observed. This leads to the view that the favourable action of vitamins in children with minor cerebral dysfunction is sometimes assumed in severely mentally affected children where the final effect is in the optimal case nil.