Complex Antioxidant Blend Improves Memory in Community-Dwelling Seniors

Abstract

One hundred thirteen community dwelling subjects between the ages of 50 and 75 without dementia were recruited. A blind administrator randomly assigned 54 subjects to placebo and 59 to active treatment groups. The active treatment consisted of four months treatment with a complex antioxidant blend. Placebo treatment was an identical gel and bottle administered for four months. Forty-eight active subjects and 38 placebo subjects completed the study. Memory testing with a 50 part paired association test and a 20-word immediate recall test were significantly improved, p = 0.015 and p = 0.005 respectively. A secondary study of serum homocysteine was completed in 25 active treatment subjects and 17 placebo subjects. Significant reduction in serum homocysteine levels was seen in the active treatment subjects (p = 0.005). A complex antioxidant blend taken over four months improves performance on two difficult memory tests in community dwelling elderly subjects. Furthermore, the antioxidant significantly reduced the serum homocysteine level in treatment group.