The Nutritional foundation for cognitive function and well-being is the B vitamins and the EFA’s. Deficiencies of these nutrients have been linked to impaired cognition, neurological diseases, and mental disorders. B vitamin deficiencies are known to produce symptoms of psychiatric disorders, including depression and schizophrenia, and they play an important role in cognitive decline and the development of dementia. Vitamins B6, B9 (folate) and B12 may help prevent cognitive decline and protect against more serious dementia such as Alzheimer's disease. A primary mechanism of action is the suppression of homocysteine, which tends to be elevated when you have brain degeneration. Having a homocysteine level above 14 micromoles per liter is associated with a doubled risk of Alzheimer’s. Research has shown taking high doses of folic acid, B6 and B12 lowers blood levels of homocysteine, decreasing brain shrinkage by as much as 90%. B vitamins also have a direct impact on the methylation cycle, and are required for the production and function of neurotransmitters, and for the maintenance of myelin, all of which are important for cognitive health. Among the most important vitamins for brain health are vitamins B3 (niacin), B6 and B12 Some of the symptoms of deficiency are delirium and dementia. Schizophrenia also shares some of the same symptomatic picture. Like many deficiencies and malfunctions, these diseases originate in the gut and are associated with malnourishment from junk food and too much of corn products. Other B vitamin deficiencies, including B1, B2, B6, B8 and B12, can also produce neuropsychiatric symptoms. As noted in a 2016 review of B vitamins and the brain: "The B-vitamins … perform essential, closely interrelated roles in cellular functioning, acting as co-enzymes in a vast array of catabolic and anabolic enzymatic reactions. Their collective effects are particularly prevalent to numerous aspects of brain function, including energy production, DNA/RNA synthesis/repair, genomic and nongenomic methylation, and the synthesis of numerous neurochemicals and signaling molecules … [E]vidence from human research clearly shows both that a significant proportion of the populations of developed countries suffer from deficiencies or insufficiencies in one or more of this group of vitamins, and that, in the absence of an optimal diet, administration of the entire B-vitamin group, rather than a small sub-set, at doses greatly in excess of the current governmental recommendations, would be a rational approach for preserving brain health." Please consider OHS’s Opti-Methyl-B and Dr Harris’s Essential B12, along with Optimal EFA-Essential Fatty Acids. Whole Food, predigested nutrients are superior to almost any product available. These natural B and EFA nutrients from OHS are on my every day nutritional supplementation list for my patients, my family and myself. Yours in Health and Wellness, John W Brimhall, DC, BA, BS, FIAMA, DIBAK
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