A team of Japanese scientists has compiled results from a 15-year study indicating the association between glucose tolerance status and the development of dementia. The study titled, "Glucose Tolerance Status and Risk of Dementia in the Community: The Hisayama Study" was published September 20, 2011, in the medical journal, Neurology. Of particular interest is the connection between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease – the most common form of progressive dementia for which there is still no cure.
Does Diabetes Affect Brain Function?
Diabetes is the body's inability to produce insulin (the hormone that makes it possible for our cells to take in glucose) or produce an adequate amount of insulin. A diagnosis of diabetes means a substantially increased risk of heart disease, vascular problems and amputation of limbs. Diabetes can destroy the kidneys and cause blindness. That diabetes could also affect brain function would seem to be a reasonable and logical conclusion.
Obesity is linked to type 2 diabetes and is a critical health concern for people of all ages across the U.S. Additionally, being overweight and old can lead to unique – and often devastating – health problems. One such problem is dementia, particularly Alzheimer's disease.
Early Research Shows Diabetes a Suspect for Alzheimer's Disease
The Mayo Clinic website presents information in the article, "Type 2 Diabetes: Complications". Staff members say, "Type 2 diabetes may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. The poorer your blood sugar control, the greater the risk appears to be."
The person who presents with a stroke caused by damaged and/or blocked blood vessels resulting from diabetes may show symptoms of vascular dementia. (Mayo Clinic: "Vascular Dementia: Symptoms"). The article further states, "Vascular dementia can also develop very gradually, just like Alzheimer's disease." Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia share many of the same symptoms and characteristics.
Japanese Study Indicates Diabetes Risk Factor for Dementia
The objective of the Japanese study was to investigate the association between glucose tolerance status defined by a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and the development of dementia. The study used a total of 1,017 community-dwelling dementia-free subjects aged 60-years and older who underwent the OGTT. Adjustments were made for age, sex and blood pressure. The subjects were followed up for 15 years.
Details of the study were published in the medical journal "Neurology" on September 20, 2011, under the title, "Glucose Tolerance Status and Risk of Dementia in the Community: The Hisayama Study".
The results, according to the medical team: "The age and sex-adjusted incidence of all-cause dementia, Alzheimer disease (AD), and vascular dementia (VaD) were significantly higher in subjects with diabetes than in those with normal glucose tolerance."
The study conclusion: "Our findings suggest that diabetes is a significant risk factor for all-cause dementia, AD, and probably VaD."
What Can Americans Learn from The Hisayama Study?
The risks associated with high blood pressure, heart disease and even diabetes with all of its nasty complications don't seem to be enough to scare people into monitoring the foods they eat and/or losing excess weight. Could this latest study showing a substantial link between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease be the motivator people need to change poor eating habits? Time will tell.
If you've ever lived with or cared for an older person suffering with Alzheimer's disease, then you know how horrifying it is to watch the victim's mind deteriorate a little more each day until everything is gone. It's still not completely clear how diabetes contributes to Alzheimer's, but just knowing that it does is terrifying in itself. Caregivers can take an active role in senior health by helping their elderly loved ones maintain a proper diet. Make certain your aging parents or other elders get enough exercise, too.
Warding off diabetes may not prevent your loved one from becoming a victim of Alzheimer's. At best, it might at least delay or slow the progression of the disease long enough to find a treatment for Alzheimer's symptoms. Until a cure is found, victims and their families will take every bit of hope they can get.
Sources
- Neurology (Journal and a dot org website online): "Glucose Tolerance Status and Risk of Dementia in the Community: The Hisayama Study" (T. Ohara, MD; Y. Doi, MD, PhD; T. Ninomiya, MD, PhD; Y. Hirakawa, MD; J. Hata, MD, PhD; T. Iwaki, MD, PhD; S. Kanba, MD, PhD; and Y. Kiyohara, MD, PhD, 2011).
- Mayo Clinic (Online): "Type 2 Diabetes: Complications" (Staff, May 2011).
- Mayo Clinic (Online): "Vascular Dementia: Symptoms" (Staff, April 2011).
Mary King - Mary King is a Suite101 Topic Editor for the Caregiver Support and Home Management sections. She has authored 5 teen-based novels.
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