High Protein Diet and Alzheimer's
Protein Puts You at Risk
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By Stephanie Tweito Jacob
Giving up your low-carb diet may be the best thing you could do for your memory. A new study suggests a high-protein diet may actually increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
The study, published in the journal "Molecular Neurodegeneration," found that mice fed a diet rich in protein and low in carbohydrates, similar to that of the original Atkins plan, had brains that were smaller and lighter weight than mice fed other diets. And, areas of their hippocampus -- a region of the brain linked with long-term memory -- were also less developed.
"The most unexpected result of our study was the loss of overall brain mass associated with a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet," lead author Sam Gandy, a professor at The Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and a neurologist at the James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center in the Bronx, NY told the UK's "Telegraph."
Also unexpected: The reduced brain size does not appear to have been triggered by an increase in the cell-destroying plaque commonly associated with memory loss. The protein-loaded mice did not form any more of this poisonous plaque than the other animals in the study. Therefore it's thought that eating large amounts of protein may actually make the brain more vulnerable to the plaque, causing cells to die even more quickly and ultimately lead to the smaller brain mass.
This could be a double-whammy for those who also eat high-fat foods and are prone to Alzheimer's, according to Gandy. "High-protein diets are used for weight control, and those diets sometimes combine high fat and high protein, which may be doubly damaging, if the high fat increases the accumulation of plaques and the high protein sensitizes nerve cells to the poison released by plaques," he said in press release about the study.
But, it's not yet known if these findings have implications for the human brain. Gandy says this would require double-blind clinical diet trials. "This would be a challenging undertaking, but potentially worthwhile if there is a real chance that the ravages of Alzheimer's might be slowed or avoided through healthy eating," he said. "Such trails will be required if scientists are ever to make specific recommendations about dietary risks for Alzheimer's."
The Alzheimer's Society also agrees additional research is needed. "Further investigation is now needed to better understand whether the way we balance our diet can increase or reduce our vulnerability to Alzheimer's disease," Susanne Sorensen, the UK organization's head of research told the "Daily Mail."
A Mediterranean-style diet, however, has been shown to be helpful for those at risk for mental decline. This diet is known for its low amounts of red meat and poultry and more fish, fruits, nuts, legumes, and vegetables, and includes olive oil and moderate amounts of wine. Getting regular exercise has also been shown to add to the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, further decreasing the risk of Alzheimer's.
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CraneBldrs 01:27:20 PM Oct 22 2009
I just love these types of studies. How much protein did they jam into their systems to get these types of results. Too much of anything can produce advese results.Wonder what kind of grant paid by our tax dollars were wasted on this study.
Don l livi solo 12:48:13 PM Oct 22 2009
God!!!!....., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on. God!!!!...., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on.The High Protein diet is not effecting me at all. The High Protein diet is not effecting me at all.Donllivi
Nickyb1962 12:47:02 PM Oct 22 2009
CalicoErotica: Apparently you only saw the words Atdkins Plan highlighted in blue and failed to notice the word "original" before you got defensive and went off the deep end about the researchers not reading the ENTIRE Atkins NEW Diet Revolution book. "Original" vs. "New". There's a difference.
HOPEWP 12:45:06 PM Oct 22 2009
Mice are not meat eaters, so how exactly do they compare with humans?? and how do their brains compare to ours??
Don l livi solo 12:43:19 PM Oct 22 2009
God!!!!........., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on. God!!!!........., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on. The high protein diet is not effecting me at all. This is exactly the diet I'm on. The high protein diet is not effecting me at all. This is exactly the diet I'm on. Don
Don l livi solo 12:43:08 PM Oct 22 2009
God!!!!........., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on. God!!!!........., they never stop. This is exactly the diet I'm on. The high protein diet is not effecting me at all. This is exactly the diet I'm on. The high protein diet is not effecting me at all. This is exactly the diet I'm on. Donllivi
rushechos 12:39:12 PM Oct 22 2009
vcponsardin1, it actually turns out to have little to do with expending more calories. If you don't take in enough calories your body thinks you're starving, shuts down burning up fat, and will burn your muscles when you exercise.
BoaterTone 12:38:48 PM Oct 22 2009
Giving up your low-carb diet may be the best thing you could done for your memory. Unless you are already having trouble constructing sentences in English....
BoaterTone 12:37:54 PM Oct 22 2009
"Giving up your low-carb diet may be the best thing you could done for your memory. UMM ??? Does it mess with your ability to construct a sentence in English?
