Watch Your Weight As You Age: Obesity And Aging Can Lead To Alzheimer's Disease

WASHINGTON D.C .: A recent study found that the combination of obesity and aging could lead to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

In addition, researchers at Brock University in Ontario, Canada, discovered that certain regions of the brain respond differently to the risk factors badociated with Alzheimer's disease.

They examined the effects of a diet inducing obesity on insulin signaling (the process that tells the body how to use sugar), and the markers of the insulin signaling system. inflammation and cellular stress.

These factors have been found to be involved in the progression of Alzheimer's disease during the aging process in mice. One group of mice received a high fat and high sugar diet ("HFS"), while the control group followed a normal diet.

The researchers measured the inflammation and stress levels of animals in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex in the brain after 13 weeks on the badigned diets. They compared the brains of older mice to those of a younger set of basic mice. The hippocampus is near the center of the brain and is responsible for long-term memory. The prefrontal cortex, at the front of the brain, oversees complex cognitive, emotional, and behavioral function.

Compared with the control group, the HFS group exhibited significantly higher markers of inflammation, insulin resistance (impaired insulin signaling) and cellular stress in regions of the US. hippocampus involved in the progression of Alzheimer's disease. The prefrontal cortex region of the HFS group showed more signs of insulin resistance, but the inflammation and markers of cellular stress did not change.

The regional differences between the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus diet [indicates] that the pathology of the disease is not uniform throughout the brain, "the researchers wrote.

The levels of inflammation of the control group also increased after the test compared to baseline readings.

These findings support the theory that aging alone plays a role in the progression of Alzheimer's disease, and obesity exacerbates the effects of aging on brain function.

"This study provides new information regarding the mechanistic link between obesity and the transition from adulthood to middle age and signaling cascades that may be related to pathology [Alzheimer’s] later in life, "writes the research team.

"These findings add to our basic understanding of the pathways involved in the early progression of pathogenesis [Alzheimer’s] and demonstrate the negative effects of a HFS diet on both the prefrontal cortex and the regions of cancer. # 39; hippocampus. "

The study appears in the journal Physiological Reports.