Folic acid and ascorbic acid status of elderly subjects

Graduation date: 1975Folic acid and ascorbic acid status have been assessed in\ud twenty non-institutionalized elderly subjects with respect to both\ud hematological and dietary aspects.\ud The hemoglobins, hematocrits, and serum ascorbic acid\ud concentrations were within the normal range. A few subjects had\ud total serum protein concentrations which were less than the acceptable\ud level. More than half of the subjects had serum folic acid\ud concentrations below the acceptable level. Mean dietary nutrient\ud intakes were comparable to the Recommended Dietary Allowances\ud with the exception of calories and folic acid.\ud In general, the diets of the men were higher in calories,\ud protein and iron while diets of the women were higher in ascorbic\ud and folic acids. The men tended to have higher hematocrits,\ud hemoglobin and serum folates while the women had higher serum concentrations of ascorbic acid. No significant effect due to vitamin\ud C supplementation was observed. Although there was no significant\ud correlation between the serum concentrations of ascorbic and folic\ud acids, examinations of group means suggested that these parameters\ud were inversely related.\ud Multiple regression analyses of hematological values and\ud dietary nutrient intakes revealed no significant effects