LET’S GET DEMENTED!!
Looks like we’ve got more links between the slop we eat, and your grandma Margaret forgetting your name again.
Perhaps Homer can’t be blamed for his loopy absent minded parental behavior.
Reuters reports:
Mice fed junk food for nine months showed signs of developing the abnormal brain tangles strongly associated with Alzheimer’s disease, a Swedish researcher said on Friday.
The findings [...] show how a diet rich in fat, sugar and cholesterol could increase the risk of the most common type of dementia.
“On examining the brains of these mice, we found a chemical change not unlike that found in the Alzheimer brain,” Susanne Akterin, a researcher at the Karolinska Institutet’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, who led the study, said in a statement.
“We now suspect that a high intake of fat and cholesterol in combination with genetic factors … can adversely affect several brain substances, which can be a contributory factor in the development of Alzheimer’s.”
In her research, Akterin focused on a gene variant called apoE4, found in 15 to 20 percent of people and which is a known risk factor for Alzheimer’s. The gene is involved in the transport of cholesterol.
She studied mice genetically engineered to mimic the effect of the variant gene in humans, and which were fed a diet rich in fat, sugar and cholesterol for nine months — meals representing the nutritional content of fast food.
These mice showed chemical changes in their brains [...] as well as signs that cholesterol in food reduced levels of another protein called Arc involved in memory storage, Akterin said.
So let’s say you are unlucky enough to be one of these 15-20 % of people that have the gene variant that is a known risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. If this gene is involved in the transport of cholesterol, I would make a wild guess that maintaining a diet high in cholesterol for a long period of time could exacerbate any problems that you could potentially have.
On top of that, consuming excess cholesterol interferes with memory storage.
“All in all, the results give some indication of how Alzheimer’s can be prevented, but more research in this field needs to be done before proper advice can be passed on to the general public,”
I laugh at statements like this in regards to studies. What is she saying? Is she saying she’s not sure if it would be better or worse if people stopped eating “junk” type foods? I’m not saying they shouldn’t keep doing studies on this, but how about before they find out everything there is to know about the effects of food on dementia, why not suggest to the general public that they should cut back on foods that have no real benefit in their overall diet anyway?
Maybe this researcher has caught a little dementia herself. It’s contagious, right?
I wonder if one can recognize the signs if they are starting to get dementia themselves…
What was I talking about?
I don’t think the researcher wasn’t sure. I’m guessing she just didn’t want to say “JUNK FOOD = ALZHEIMER’S” before she had more proof.
I think I might be doing better on the junk food front, but one thing I can’t seem to stay away from is chips and salsa. At least I’m eating whole grain tortilla chips?
So, let’s recap:
A lifetime of junk food = obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, gingivitis, systemic inflammation, muscle wasting, visceral obesity, heart disease, stroke….and now Alzheimer’s
Wait a second, this could be a good thing.
If I am going to turn myself into a sickly fat tub of goo, then maybe it’s best that I develop Alzheimer’s.
At least then, I won’t know that I am a sickly fat tub of goo
“…more research in this field needs to be done…” is often researcher speak for “please give us another grant”.
While they may need more research to determine the relationship between junk food and alzheimers, I don’t think there is any question people should be eating far less of it.
your articles are interesting and so useful for me. Thank you for sharing great information.
-”At least then, I won’t know that I am a sickly fat tub of goo”
HA!
-“…more research in this field needs to be done…” is often researcher speak for “please give us another grant”.
Good point. I know that’s why they are always so vague with their conclusions.
I just think it’s funny because if their intent when doing the study is to find out what can help people, then why don’t they – as educated researchers in the field – suggest to us lamers what we should do.
Instead, it seems like by being vague, they are hoping the results will speak for themselves. But, in reality, the results are left open to interpretation to many people with their own biases and agendas that then tell everyone what their interpretation is of the study when they often are not educated AT ALL on the subject.
I think they err on the side of vagueness to decrease the chances of lawsuits, as well.
Hmmm I love the way that eating a diet in junk food is bad for your health because of the fat. Processed fats such as hydrogenated oils …yes thats bad, but not all fats. Sugar I agree with though. But Junk Food is highly processed there are probably numerous reasons why it is terrible for you and I get a bit defensive when they blame it all on the fat.