Skip to main content
Advertisement
  • Neurology.org
  • Journals
    • Neurology
    • Clinical Practice
    • Education
    • Genetics
    • Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation
  • Online Sections
    • Neurology Video Journal Club
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI)
    • Innovations in Care Delivery
    • Practice Buzz
    • Practice Current
    • Residents & Fellows
    • Without Borders
  • Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Disputes & Debates
    • Health Disparities
    • Infographics
    • Neurology Future Forecasting Series
    • Null Hypothesis
    • Patient Pages
    • Topics A-Z
    • Translations
  • Podcast
  • CME
  • About
    • About the Journals
    • Contact Us
    • Editorial Board
  • Authors
    • Submit New Manuscript
    • Submit Revised Manuscript
    • Author Center

Advanced Search

Main menu

  • Neurology.org
  • Journals
    • Neurology
    • Clinical Practice
    • Education
    • Genetics
    • Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation
  • Online Sections
    • Neurology Video Journal Club
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI)
    • Innovations in Care Delivery
    • Practice Buzz
    • Practice Current
    • Residents & Fellows
    • Without Borders
  • Collections
    • COVID-19
    • Disputes & Debates
    • Health Disparities
    • Infographics
    • Neurology Future Forecasting Series
    • Null Hypothesis
    • Patient Pages
    • Topics A-Z
    • Translations
  • Podcast
  • CME
  • About
    • About the Journals
    • Contact Us
    • Editorial Board
  • Authors
    • Submit New Manuscript
    • Submit Revised Manuscript
    • Author Center
  • Home
  • Latest Articles
  • Current Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Neurology Video Journal Club
  • Residents & Fellows

User menu

  • Subscribe
  • My Alerts
  • Log in

Search

  • Advanced search
Neurology
Home
The most widely read and highly cited peer-reviewed neurology journal
  • Subscribe
  • My Alerts
  • Log in
Site Logo
  • Home
  • Latest Articles
  • Current Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Neurology Video Journal Club
  • Residents & Fellows

Share

May 08, 2001; 56 (9) Article

Vitamin B12 and folate in relation to the development of Alzheimer’s disease

H-X. Wang, Å. Wahlin, H. Basun, J. Fastbom, B. Winblad, L. Fratiglioni
First published May 8, 2001, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.56.9.1188
H-X. Wang
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Å. Wahlin
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
H. Basun
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
J. Fastbom
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
B. Winblad
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
L. Fratiglioni
From the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine (Drs. Wang, Wahlin, Basun, Fastbom, Winblad, and Fratiglioni), NEUROTEC, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and Astra Zeneca (Dr. Basun), Clinical Science, R & D Södertälje, Sweden.
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Full PDF
Citation
Vitamin B12 and folate in relation to the development of Alzheimer’s disease
H-X. Wang, Å. Wahlin, H. Basun, J. Fastbom, B. Winblad, L. Fratiglioni
Neurology May 2001, 56 (9) 1188-1194; DOI: 10.1212/WNL.56.9.1188

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Permissions

Make Comment

See Comments

Downloads
1993

Share

  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Disclosures
Loading

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.

Abstract

Objective: To explore the associations of low serum levels of vitamin B12 and folate with AD occurrence.

Methods: A population-based longitudinal study in Sweden, the Kungsholmen Project. A random sample of 370 nondemented persons, aged 75 years and older and not treated with B12 and folate, was followed for 3 years to detect incident AD cases. Two cut-off points were used to define low levels of vitamin B12 (≤150 and ≤250 pmol/L) and folate (≤10 and ≤12 nmol/L), and all analyses were performed using both definitions. AD and other types of dementia were diagnosed by specialists according to DSM-III-R criteria.

Results: When using B12 ≤150pmol/L and folate ≤10 nmol/L to define low levels, compared with people with normal levels of both vitamins, subjects with low levels of B12 or folate had twice higher risks of developing AD (relative risk [RR] = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.2 to 3.5). These associations were even stronger in subjects with good baseline cognition (RR = 3.1, 95% CI = 1.1 to 8.4). Similar relative risks of AD were found in subjects with low levels of B12 or folate and among those with both vitamins at low levels. A comparable pattern was detected when low vitamin levels were defined as B12 ≤250 pmol/L and folate ≤12 nmol/L.

Conclusions: This study suggests that vitamin B12 and folate may be involved in the development of AD. A clear association was detected only when both vitamins were taken into account, especially among the cognitively intact subjects. No interaction was found between the two vitamins. Monitoring serum B12 and folate concentration in the elderly may be relevant for prevention of AD.

  • Received September 25, 2000.
  • Accepted in final form January 26, 2001.
View Full Text

AAN Members

We have changed the login procedure to improve access between AAN.com and the Neurology journals. If you are experiencing issues, please log out of AAN.com and clear history and cookies. (For instructions by browser, please click the instruction pages below). After clearing, choose preferred Journal and select login for AAN Members. You will be redirected to a login page where you can log in with your AAN ID number and password. When you are returned to the Journal, your name should appear at the top right of the page.

Google Safari Microsoft Edge Firefox

Click here to login

AAN Non-Member Subscribers

Click here to login

Purchase access

For assistance, please contact:
AAN Members (800) 879-1960 or (612) 928-6000 (International)
Non-AAN Member subscribers (800) 638-3030 or (301) 223-2300 option 3, select 1 (international)

Sign Up
Information on how to subscribe to Neurology and Neurology: Clinical Practice can be found here 

Purchase
Individual access to articles is available through the Add to Cart option on the article page.  Access for 1 day (from the computer you are currently using) is US$ 39.00.  Pay-per-view content is for the use of the payee only, and content may not be further distributed by print or electronic means.  The payee may view, download, and/or print the article for his/her personal, scholarly, research, and educational use.  Distributing copies (electronic or otherwise) of the article is not allowed.

Letters: Rapid online correspondence

  • Reply to Wang and Rieder
    • Sander Fridman, psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatric Program of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro - Rio de Janeiro - Brazilsander_fridman@hotmail.com
    Submitted July 08, 2001
  • Vitamin B12 and folate in relation to the development of Alzheimer’s disease
    • Carlos R M Rieder, Neurology Service Hospital de Cliniicas de Porto Alegre Porto Alegre, Brazilsandi_moriarity@urmc.rochester.edu
    • Daniele Fricke
    Submitted June 26, 2001
  • Reply to Carlos R M Rieder
    • Hui-Xin Wang, Stockholm Gerontology Research Center Stockholm, SwedenHuixin.wang@phs.ki.se
    Submitted June 26, 2001
Comment

REQUIREMENTS

If you are uploading a letter concerning an article:
You must have updated your disclosures within six months: http://submit.neurology.org

Your co-authors must send a completed Publishing Agreement Form to Neurology Staff (not necessary for the lead/corresponding author as the form below will suffice) before you upload your comment.

If you are responding to a comment that was written about an article you originally authored:
You (and co-authors) do not need to fill out forms or check disclosures as author forms are still valid
and apply to letter.

Submission specifications:

  • Submissions must be < 200 words with < 5 references. Reference 1 must be the article on which you are commenting.
  • Submissions should not have more than 5 authors. (Exception: original author replies can include all original authors of the article)
  • Submit only on articles published within 6 months of issue date.
  • Do not be redundant. Read any comments already posted on the article prior to submission.
  • Submitted comments are subject to editing and editor review prior to posting.

More guidelines and information on Disputes & Debates

Compose Comment

More information about text formats

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
Author Information
NOTE: The first author must also be the corresponding author of the comment.
First or given name, e.g. 'Peter'.
Your last, or family, name, e.g. 'MacMoody'.
Your email address, e.g. higgs-boson@gmail.com
Your role and/or occupation, e.g. 'Orthopedic Surgeon'.
Your organization or institution (if applicable), e.g. 'Royal Free Hospital'.
Publishing Agreement
NOTE: All authors, besides the first/corresponding author, must complete a separate Publishing Agreement Form and provide via email to the editorial office before comments can be posted.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Vertical Tabs

You May Also be Interested in

Back to top
  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Methods.
    • Results.
    • Discussion.
    • Acknowledgments
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Disclosures
Advertisement

SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination Safety in Guillain-Barré Syndrome, Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy, and Multifocal Motor Neuropathy

Dr. Jeffrey Allen and Dr. Nicholas Purcell

► Watch

Related Articles

  • No related articles found.

Alert Me

  • Alert me when eletters are published

Recommended articles

  • Article
    Interaction of serum vitamin B12 and folate with MTHFR genotypes on risk of ischemic stroke
    Xianhui Qin, J. David Spence, Jianping Li et al.
    Neurology, January 13, 2020
  • Article
    Clinicopathologic features of folate-deficiency neuropathy
    Haruki Koike, Mie Takahashi, Ken Ohyama et al.
    Neurology, February 06, 2015
  • Brief Communications
    Plasma homocysteine and MTHFR C677T genotype in levodopa-treated patients with PD
    K. Yasui, H. Kowa, K. Nakaso et al.
    Neurology, August 08, 2000
  • Articles
    Vitamin B12 status and rate of brain volume loss in community-dwelling elderly
    A. Vogiatzoglou, H. Refsum, C. Johnston et al.
    Neurology, September 08, 2008
Neurology: 100 (13)

Articles

  • Ahead of Print
  • Current Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Popular Articles
  • Translations

About

  • About the Journals
  • Ethics Policies
  • Editors & Editorial Board
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise

Submit

  • Author Center
  • Submit a Manuscript
  • Information for Reviewers
  • AAN Guidelines
  • Permissions

Subscribers

  • Subscribe
  • Activate a Subscription
  • Sign up for eAlerts
  • RSS Feed
Site Logo
  • Visit neurology Template on Facebook
  • Follow neurology Template on Twitter
  • Visit Neurology on YouTube
  • Neurology
  • Neurology: Clinical Practice
  • Neurology: Education
  • Neurology: Genetics
  • Neurology: Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation
  • AAN.com
  • AANnews
  • Continuum
  • Brain & Life
  • Neurology Today

Wolters Kluwer Logo

Neurology | Print ISSN:0028-3878
Online ISSN:1526-632X

© 2023 American Academy of Neurology

  • Privacy Policy
  • Feedback
  • Advertise