A new study found that taking high daily doses of vitamin B may slow the rate of brain shrinkage in elderly people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), media reported Friday.

Vitamins B6 and B12, and folic acid, control levels of the amino acid homocysteine in the blood. High levels of homocysteine are linked to development of Alzheimer.

Conducted by University of Oxford, the study followed 168 people with mild memory problems. Half took high-dose vitamin B tablets for two years, and half got a placebo.

The researchers found that, those who took folic acid, vitamin B6 and B12 had their brains shrink by 0.76 percent a year on average, while those taking placebo had an atrophy rate of 1.08 percent.

People with the highest levels of homocysteine benefited the most, with atrophy rates on treatment half of those taking the placebo "It is our hope that this simple and safe treatment will delay development of Alzheimer's in many people who suffer from mild memory problems," study coauthor David Smith told Reuters.

MCI causes memory loss and inhibites mental functioning and it affects about 16 percent of people aged 70 and older. Around half of those with MCI will develop Alzheimer's within five years of diagnosis.

The findings were published in the September issue of PLoS ONE, the journal of the non-profit Public Library of Science.

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