On May 24, new results from a randomized, clinical trial within the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS) were published in the American Journal of Nutrition. The study, known as COSMOS-Web, was conducted by Columbia University, in collaboration with Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Harvard Medical School). The trial results found that multivitamin supplementation slowed decline of memory in people ages 60 and older by roughly 3.1 fewer years compared to placebo. The researchers concluded, “Multivitamin supplementation holds promise as a safe and accessible approach to maintaining cognitive health in older age.”
The ancillary study involved 3,562 adults who were randomly assigned to either take a daily multivitamin supplement (Centrum Silver) or placebo. They were evaluated annually for three years using Internet-based battery of neuropsychological tests, and “the pre-specified primary outcome measure was change in episodic memory, operationally defined as immediate recall performance on the ModRey test, after [one year] of intervention,” according to researchers. “Secondary outcome measures included changes in episodic memory over [three years] of followup and changes in performance on neuropsychological tasks of novel object recognition and executive function over [three years].”
James Griffiths, PhD, senior vice president, International and Scientific Affairs for The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), stated “At CRN, we have long promoted the benefits of taking daily multivitamins to fill gaps in the nutritional profiles of most people. The results of this study show that, for older people, doing so could have a tremendous impact on quality of life. It literally gives people a degree of control over cognitive decline that they didn’t know they had. For many older adults, it changes the question from ‘Should I take a multivitamin?’ to ‘Why would I not?’”
Steve Mister, CRN’s president and CEO, added, “As a trade association, we’re proud that two of our members, Haleon and Mars Edge, helped support this important research. Science continues to unlock the benefits of these and other supplements, demonstrating, in this case, a profound improvement in the lives of those taking them.”
The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) also publicly responded to the results of the study. Duffy MacKay, senior vice president of dietary supplements, stated, “When it comes to nutrition, even those individuals with the healthiest diets often fail to reach the recommended daily intake level for vitamins and nutrients. As we age, achieving that goal becomes even more important in order to protect memory and cognition, which is why CHPA is pleased to once again see promising results emerge from this clinical trial.
“These results are certainly important, as there is an urgent need to identify strategies to preserve cognitive function and reduce the burden of dementia on families and society. This clinical trial reinforces the important role supplements play in helping adults meet their nutrient needs, which is a critical part of healthy aging for the mind and body.”
MacKay concluded, “Last year, participants in CHPA’s Regulatory, Scientific and Quality Conference had the opportunity to hear directly from Mark Espeland, PhD, principal investigator on the 2022 COSMOS-Mind trial results, and we are excited to see this additional study published. Scientific evidence grows in increments, and this study is an important component in strengthening the beneficial role of safe, accessible, and affordable dietary supplements that can be used to optimize health through self-care.”
For more information, visit www.cosmostrial.org.
