Hello, and homocysteine

[Ruthi]

I'm Ruth, 65 and live in the UK. I recently did the Food for the Brain quiz and came out a bit iffy. So I did as they advised and had my homocysteine tested. The level was 9.4 which puts me at some risk of alzheimers according to their scale. I am aware of my memory and attention being less good than they were.

They advise taking a B12 complex and I have ordered some Holford Connect.

I have two questions. 1) should I take any other tests before I start, to give me a baseline. At the moment I only supplement with magnesium, Evening Primrose Oil and red clover. Oh, and Natural Dessicated Thyroid - my thyroid levels are optimal.

2)Is there anything else I should consider taking?

My B12 and folate were tested 18 months ago, but at that time I was taking a supplement that had them in.

[ChristianElliott Partner]

Hi Ruth,

Thanks for your questions, and welcome to the community!

Regarding homocysteine levels, note that there are different reference ranges for blood plasma and urine samples: emedicine.medscape.com/arti...

Also, taking a B-12 supplement is a very reasonable option. Our ability to absorb B-12 from dietary sources tends to decline as we age. See this page for more detail on B-12 levels: memorylosstest.com/vitamin-...

Lastly, the "Pinned Posts" section of the right of this page can give you some guidelines on memory performance, good foods for brain health, etc.

- Christian