Getting enough vitamin C may be linked to better brain health as we age.Researchers in Japan studied more than 2,000 adults, over the age of 64, comparing vitamin C levels in their blood plasma to MRI scans of their brains.They found that participants with lower vitamin C levels tended to have lower gray matter volume, as well as weaker connectivity within the brain's default mode network—a collection of regions involved in functions such as attention and autobiographical memory.The researchers accounted for factors that can influence brain health, including age, physical activity, and education level, and the associations remained.One author says, “This finding generates the exciting hypothesis that a diet rich in vitamin C might play a supportive role in maintaining brain health and mitigating age-related cognitive decline in older adults.”While the results suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin C levels could help support healthy brain aging, the study does not prove cause and effect.The authors say larger, more diverse studies are needed to confirm the findings.Source: PLOS OneAuthor Affiliations: Hirosaki University, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Diet & Well-being Research Institute.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter