Good Health Of The Heart Protects Against Alzheimer's Disease

Good Health Of The Heart Protects Against Alzheimer's Disease.
Sticking to a heart-healthy lifestyle may also dependant off Alzheimer's disease, according to a reborn study that suggests that raising "good" cholesterol levels can serve prevent the brain disorder in older people. The study, published in the December pour of Archives of Neurology, found that people who had low levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or "good" cholesterol had a 60 percent greater imperil of developing Alzheimer's ailment after the age of 65 than those who had high levels. Cholesterol is a waxy substance composed of "good and bad" cholesterol and triglycerides found in the bloodstream.

More than 50 percent of the US populace has high levels of "bad" cholesterol, according to the study. "Our think over suggests that high HDL levels 'good' cholesterol are associated with a trim risk for Alzheimer's disease," said Dr Christiane Reitz, the study's author. "Ways to expand HDL levels include losing weight if overweight, aerobic annoy and a healthy diet".

By treating problems with cholesterol levels, "we can downgrade the incidence of Alzheimer's disease in the population". Some medications, such as statins, fibrates and niacin, that are cast-off to lower "bad" cholesterol also raise "good" cholesterol an assistant professor of neurology at Columbia University's Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's Disease in New York City. More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease, the most standard make of dementia, and those numbers could triple by 2050, according to healthiness officials.

The US National Institutes of Health reports that about 5 percent of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 have late-onset Alzheimer's disease, the more public form of the disorder, and the acceptance increases with age. By age 85, nearly 50 percent of the population develops the disease, according to the agency.

Early-onset Alzheimer's, a superior form of the disease, begins in middle age and runs in families. Late-onset Alzheimer's has a genetic component influenced by lifestyle factors, according to the agency. There is no course of treatment for Alzheimer's disease, but a few drugs can advise reduce symptoms for a time, according to experts.

However, people can affront their risk by reducing their intake of trans-fats and increasing monounsaturated fats that keep "good" cholesterol turned on and "bad" cholesterol low noting that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol also helps. Foods serious in monounsaturated fats include vegetable oils, avocados, peanut butter and many nuts and seeds.

The 1130 turn over participants were drawn from a random sample of Medicare recipients in New York City. The participants were screened for Alzheimer's, and those with symptoms were excluded. Screening for the consider began in 1999 and follow-ups were conducted every 18 months until the figures was analyzed in 2010.

Participants also underwent a battery of tests measuring crackers functions, such as memory, language processing, visual-spatial placing and executive function. Executive function allows people to comprehend instructions and superb a given task. During the study, 101 cases of Alzheimer's disease were identified, at an average discretion of 83 years.

One weakness of the research is that it was conducted among elderly residents of an urban community with a high-class prevalence of risk factors, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, according to the study. The findings may not suit to a younger, healthier population.

One expert on the disease, Catherine M Roe of Washington University in St Louis, said it was already known that "good" cholesterol benefits the heart, but this scrutiny shows "an additional argument to make sure we live a healthy lifestyle. These results are substantial because they suggest that an increase in HDL cholesterol may also help ward off Alzheimer's disease," said Roe, a examine assistant professor at the school's Knight Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.

The read is strong because it used a large random sample of elderly people. But she cautioned that the results deprivation to be duplicated. However, "since the authors did not find an effect of HDL cholesterol in their previous, like study, I think we have to be cautious about these results until they are also demonstrated in other samples". In totalling to eating a healthy diet, getting exercise and losing weight as recommended by Reitz, Roe said that quitting smoking could support people increase levels of "good" cholesterol vimax-club. "I suppose it's a great idea to talk with your doctor about what you specifically can do to live the healthiest lifestyle you can," Roe suggested.