People with higher brain concentrations of vitamin D were 25 to 33 percent less likely to develop dementia or cognitive impairment, a recent study has found. Those with higher vitamin D concentrations also performed better on tests of cognitive function than those with lower concentrations.

The study involved 290 participants enrolled in the Rush Memory and Aging Project who had undergone regular physical and cognitive assessments when they were alive and agreed to donate their brains for study upon their deaths. Researchers measured concentrations of vitamin D in four regions of the participants' brains and reviewed the participants' cognitive assessments.

They found that higher brain concentrations of vitamin D were associated with 25 to 33 percent lower odds of having dementia or mild cognitive impairment at the last assessment before death. Participants with higher vitamin D concentrations had better word recall, working memory, episodic memory, and perceptual speed – the ability to compare similarities and differences quickly and accurately among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns.

The findings from this study suggest that vitamin D is neuroprotective. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is stored in the liver and fatty tissues of the body. Perhaps best known for its role in maintaining calcium balance and bone health, vitamin D plays critical roles in many physiological processes. Poor vitamin D status is implicated in the pathogenesis of many acute and chronic diseases, including rickets, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, and cancer. Learn more about vitamin D in our overview article.

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