The link between Vitamin B-12, mental focus, energy and memory is proven. You may also know that after about age 40, our bodies become less able to absorb Vitamin B-12 from food. (Since this month marks the “Great American Smokeout” in the U.S., here’s another timely fact: Smoking steals essential nutrients – including Vitamin B-12 – from the body. There’s another great reason to quit!) So, there are those who view mental decline as an inevitable part of the aging process. However, our discoveries about the power of B vitamins are prompting us to re-think the idea that getting older means losing mental function.

Correct a B-12 deficiency, help correct memory loss One of the premier medical authorities in the field, Harvard Medical School, plainly endorses the use of B-12 to treat memory loss caused by a deficiency of this invaluable vitamin. The prestigious school supports these findings:

A lack of Vitamin B-12 can cause permanent damage to brain cells

Vitamin B-12 deficiency is among the reversible causes of memory loss (along with stress and disease)

Addressing B-12 deficiency is a treatment for memory loss

Addressing B-12 deficiency early can help bring back lost memory function

Ignoring B-12 deficiency can worsen memory loss.

Younger people at risk, too?

It’s generally older adults who tend to be more prone to a deficiency of B-12. However, there is evidence that younger people don’t get enough B-12, either. People as young as 26 turned out to be as B-12 deficient as some people over 65. According to the National Institutes of Health, one study suggests that B-12 deficiency affects a much broader age range than many have thought. The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, pointed to three different age groups found to have about the same deficiency in blood levels of B-12: those 65 and over, those ages 50-64 and those ages 26-49. That’s right: people as young as 26 turned out to be as B-12 deficient as some people over 65.