High Folate Intake Linked With Nerve-damage Risk in Older Adults With Common Gene Variant

0
4524

High folate (vitamin B9) consumption is associated with an increased risk for a nerve-damage disorder in older adults who have a common genetic variant linked to reduced cellular vitamin B12 availability 

Causing too much folate (vitamin B9) is associated with increased risk for a nerve-damage disorder in older adults who have a common genetic variant. Although variable by race or ethnic background, an estimated one in six people in the U.S. carry two copies of genetic variation in TCN2, a gene that codes for vitamin B12 transport protein. For some of these individuals, the TCN2 variation (referred to as GG) can lead to conditions related to vitamin B12 deficiency even if they consume normal amounts of B12. If the epidemiological study involving 171 adults aged 60 and older, a team led by scientists from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts (USDA HNRCA) found that individuals with the GG variant of TCN2 were three times more likely to have peripheral neuropathy – nerve damage commonly associated with vitamin B12 deficiency – when compared to individuals without the variant. Click here to read more.

o
Print Friendly, PDF & Email
o