Alzheimer's Could Be a Third Form of Diabetes 251
Atzanteol writes "Insulin, it turns out, may be as important for the mind as it is for the body. Research in the last few years has raised the possibility that Alzheimer's memory loss could be due to a novel third form of diabetes. Scientists at Northwestern University have discovered why brain insulin signaling — crucial for memory formation — would stop working in Alzheimer's disease."
Avoid Alazheimers (Score:4, Informative)
Suggestions for who is at risk follow....
Hmm (Score:5, Informative)
While I understand (upon doing a double take and inspecting the package) that it is meant to support an Alzheimer association, I can't help but think that it's not a good marketing combination.
That said, I have diabetes from one grandfather and Alzheimers from my grandma, both of my dad's parents... crap.
Re:I hope not... I'm getting tired of diabetes new (Score:3, Informative)
The way I've heard it, "Diet" versions of soft drinks are more likely to cause the onset of Type-B (adult) diabetes, through their containing aspartame and other sugar substitutes which can in the long term affect the way you process sugars.
Who knows? There's a warning on all drinks that contain a source of phenylalanine, in the UK at least.
Re:Smoking? (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070409164849.htm [sciencedaily.com]
Re:I hope not... I'm getting tired of diabetes new (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Hmm (Score:5, Informative)
You're right, it is hard. Especially because of the link between low education, underlying intelligence and subsequent occupation and lifestyle. Also, as you point out, the instruments for detecting cognitive decline must be sensitive to eduction, and one current method is to use a educationally-adjusted cut-off on the cognition scales.
Having said all of this the evidence for a link to education after taking all of the above into account is pretty compelling and is no longer disputed. The mechanism for this though is still unclear, and there's certainly no evidence that playing 'brain training' games can in any way make up for it. The current best theory that we have is that people who are better educated have better 'cognitive reserve', by which we mean the ability for the brain to re-wire itself and compensate when a disease like AD occurs.
Re:I hope not... I'm getting tired of diabetes new (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I hope not... I'm getting tired of diabetes new (Score:5, Informative)
The warning's in the US too. The reason for it is because of a genetic mutation that makes some people unable to metabolize the stuff properly [wikipedia.org], otherwise, it's considered an essential amino acid [wikipedia.org], although it's primary role in humans is to produce tyrosine, which could be obtained directly from diet.
Re:The Bleeding edge of Alzheimer's research (Score:5, Informative)
Re:I hope not... I'm getting tired of diabetes new (Score:4, Informative)
Finally coffee is not a bad thing. if you think you have to have a pound of sugar and a quart of cream in your coffee then you are drinking bad coffee. unsweetened black coffee can be an incredibly pleasurable experience. find some roasted cocoa beans to add to the grounds as well and it become and incredible drink.
Re:The Bleeding edge of Alzheimer's research (Score:4, Informative)
LY411575 also seems to be associated with side effects. Two patients where withdrawn during a trial in 2004.
From this, I conclude that we are not close to a safe medication to cure Alzheimer's Disease in the near future. All medications that have been developed sofar only show a delay in the development of the disease in a part of the patients. One should realize that the cause and the mechanism behind Alzheimer's Disease are not very well understood and that there are competing theories, where "Alzheimer's Could Be a Third Form of Diabetes" is just one of them.
Re:Not to be a nitpicker... (Score:3, Informative)
Clinically, high blood sugar levels are one of the results of (symptoms of) diabetes. The underlying condition is either the body's inability to produce and regulate insulin, or the body's inability to utilize insulin. They are classifying Alzheimer's in this broad spectrum, because it appears to have a component of insulin resistance.
[Written by a Type II for 6 years]
Re:You know what's great about Alzheimer's? (Score:4, Informative)
My wife's grandfather was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease before we met. When I first met him, he walked with a walker and occasionally froze up, but was otherwise ok. Over the years, he needed more and more help doing every day chores. He couldn't eat by himself. His memory started being affected. (I thought t He also fell over more and more. When he fell, he couldn't help you lift him back up. I don't know how many people here have tried lifting up a man who can't help you out. Imagine trying to lift a 180 pound sack of sand. It's not easy. I hurt my back a few times when I came over to help.
After awhile, Beth's grandmother realized that she couldn't take care of him herself. As painful as it was, we put him in a nursing home. Over the years, he would get worse and then get better. One day he would be talking about things that went on at work "yesterday" (really decades ago), the next he would be completely lucid. He would be hallucinating (likely from his meds) and then he would be crystal clear. Unfortunately, the lucid days got fewer and further in between and his body gave out on him more and more.
He passed away this past April and, while everyone was sad, in a way it was a blessing. His mind and body were all but completely gone and he had been near death quite a few times. We all saw his passing as an end to his suffering. At his funeral, people told stories about him pre-Parkinson's (before I met him). He apparently loved going on the floor to do puzzles with his kids and was pretty active. To see a man as active mentally and physically as that be reduced to a drooling shell of a man is a fate I wouldn't wish on anyone.