“Folate, or folic acid, a common ingredient in multivitamins, may be linked to faster mental deterioration in older people, even at the recommended doses.
Researchers at the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago found that older people who took folic acid supplements at or above the recommended daily allowance of 400 micrograms had a faster rate of mental decline than others their age. The effect was also evident in people whose diets were high in folate.” (New York Times )
Its routine inclusion in multivitamins aside, many health-conscious people have deliberately added folate supplement to their diets because of evidence that it has cardiovascular benefits. This is in addition to its established benefit in averting certain birth defects in the developing embryo when taken by women in pregnancy.
