1<\/p>\n Loading up on vitamin K found in leafy greens could help your memoryCredit: Getty<\/p>\n It also plays an essential role in blood clotting and may protect cardiovascular health<\/a>. <\/p>\n But scientists from Tufts University say skimping on it could impact your brain health<\/a>. <\/p>\n “Low dietary vitamin K intake, which is common among older adults, is associated with age-related cognitive impairment,” they wrote in a study published to the Journal of Nutrition<\/a>. <\/p>\n Tong Zheng, lead author and a research scientist at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Centre on Ageing, added: \u201cThere is research that indicates vitamin K<\/a> contributes to brain function and that brain function declines during the ageing process.<\/p>\n “Vitamin K seems to have a protective effect.<\/p>\n “Our research is trying to understand the underlying mechanism for that effect, so that we might one day be able to target those mechanisms specifically.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Conducted on mice, their study suggests vitamin K helps maintain cells in the hippocampus, the memory<\/a> centre of the brain.<\/p>\n Lack of the nutrient may increase inflammation<\/a> and hamper growth of neural cells in the hippocampus, researchers said. <\/p>\n To reach their conclusions, scientists fed 60 middle-aged mice either a diet low in vitamin K, or a normal diet, for six months.<\/p>\n The rodents then underwent cognitive tests<\/a> to assess their learning and memory.<\/p>\n To supplement or not- The top 10 vitamins and minerals that are vital for health – and the best sources for each one<\/p>\n Mice low in vitamin K had a harder time recognising objects they’d seen before, a marker of impaired memory.<\/p>\n They also took longer to find their way through a water maze, where their task was to find a hidden platform. <\/p>\n Researchers also analysed the rodents’ brain tissue. <\/p>\n They found significantly lower levels of menaquinone-4, a form of vitamin K prevalent in brain tissue, in the brains of the vitamin K-deficient mice.<\/p>\n Scientists also found significant changes in the mice’s hippocampus, a brain region crucial for learning and memory.<\/p>\n The hippocampus can generate new cells in a process called neurogenesis, which keeps the brain healthy and protects it from damage.<\/p>\n But the mice who were deficient in vitamin K showed fewer signs of neurogenesis in their brain tissue and made fewer new neurons.<\/p>\n Dr Zheng said: \u201cNeurogenesis is thought to play a critical role in learning and memory, and its impairment could directly contribute to the cognitive decline observed in the study.” <\/p>\n Is it ageing or dementia?<\/p>\n Dementia – the most common form of which is Alzheimer’s – comes on slowly over time.<\/p>\n As the disease progresses, symptoms can become more severe.\u00a0<\/p>\n But at the beginning, the symptoms can be subtle or mistaken for normal memory issues related to ageing. <\/p>\n The\u00a0US National Institute on Aging<\/a>\u00a0gives some examples of what is considered normal forgetfulness in old age, and dementia disease.<\/p>\n You can refer to these above.<\/strong><\/p>\n For example, it is normal for an ageing person to forget which word to use from time-to-time, but difficulting having conversation would be more indicative of dementia.<\/p>\n Katie Puckering, Head of Alzheimer\u2019s Research UK\u2019s Information Services team, previously told The Sun:<\/a> \u201cWe quite commonly as humans put our car keys somewhere out of the ordinary and it takes longer for us to find them.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you get older, it takes longer for you to recall, or you really have to think; What was I doing? Where was I? What distracted me? Was it that I had to let the dog out? And then you find the keys by the back door.<\/p>\n \u201cThat process of retrieving the information is just a bit slower in people as they age.<\/p>\n \u201cIn dementia, someone may not be able to recall that information and what they did when they came into the house.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat may also happen is they might put it somewhere it really doesn’t belong. For example, rather than putting the milk back in the fridge, they put the kettle in the fridge.\u201d<\/p>\n Finally, nutrient-deficient mice showed more signs of inflammation in their brains. <\/p>\n Inflammation has been linked to age-related cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases, researchers said. <\/p>\n They noted that people shouldn’t rush to stock up on vitamin K supplements after reading about the study. <\/p>\n Instead, it’s important to eat more vitamin K-rich foods. <\/p>\n Dr Sarah Booth, director of the HNRCA and senior author of the study, said: \u201cPeople need to eat a healthy diet. They need to eat their vegetables.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe know that a healthy diet works, and that people who don\u2019t eat a healthy diet don\u2019t live as long or do as well cognitively,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n Foods rich in vitamin K <\/p>\n Vitamin K is found in green leafy vegetables such as: <\/p>\n It may also be found in: <\/p>\n![\"Bowl](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/NINTCHDBPICT000980796209.jpg\")
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