Korea is quickly becoming an aged society. Dementia is also becoming a vital public health problem in Korea. Cognitive impairment as a pre-stage of dementia shares most risk factors for dementia. The aim of the present study was to determine associations of serum levels of vitamins A, C, and E with the risk of cognitive impairment among elderly Koreans.

In this cross-sectional study, a total of 230 participants aged 60–79 years from Yangpyeong cohort were included. Cognitive function was assessed by the Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Examination for Dementia Screening. The logistic multivariable regression model was applied to determine the effect of serum vitamins A, C, and E on the risk of cognitive impairment.

There was no significant association between the risk of cognitive impairment and serum levels of vitamin A and vitamin C. There was a significant odd ratio when the second tertile group of beta-gamma tocopherol level was compared to the first tertile group [odds ratio (OR) = 0.37, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.14–0.98, P for trend = 0.051]. In subgroup analyses, there were significant negative associations between beta-gamma tocopherol level and the risk of cognitive impairment in men (OR = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.03–0.87, P for trend = 0.028), non-drinkers or former drinkers (OR = 0.13, 95% CI = 0.02–0.66, P for trend = 0.025), and non-smokers or former smokers (OR = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.09–0.82, P for trend = 0.017).

Serum beta-gamma tocopherol levels tended to be inversely associated with the risk of cognitive impairment. Further prospective large-scaled studies are needed to examine this association.