Research paper
Effects of Selenium Supplementation in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment or Alzheimer’s Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Study answer
What this study found
Selenium supplementation significantly increased selenium levels in plasma (about 4.09x), serum (about 1.88x), erythrocytes (about 3.73x), and CSF (about 2.18x). Erythrocyte GPX activity rose by about 0.95x (p<0.001). Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels increased by about 0.95x (p=0.0002), indicating no reduction in lipid peroxidation with Se alone. Cognitive tests improved in some MCI cases (e.g., verbal fluency and constructive praxis) and in some AD cases (MMSE), with Se plus other nutrients regimens also showing cognitive benefits in AD and MCI, though MMSE/ADAS-Cog improvements were not…
- Study & population
- Adults with Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment (older adults; age ~68–88).
- Intervention
- Se regimens varied: Brazil nut (1 nut daily) for 24 weeks; inorganic Se as sodium selenate at 320 µg/day (three times daily) for 24 weeks; supranutritional sodium selenate at 10 mg/day (three times daily) for 24 weeks; Formulation F ampoule containing 27.5 µg Se daily for 24 weeks; Souvenaid delivering 60 µg Se daily…
- Key limitation
- Small sample sizes; heterogeneity in selenium regimens (dose, form, duration); varied outcome measures and reporting (some medians); risk of bias in several studies; short follow-up limits assessment of long-term cognitive effects and safety.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
Elevated levels of oxidative stress could cause and aggravate Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Selenium (Se) is a trace element with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity with neuroprotective effects. To evaluate the effects of Se supplementation in pa…