Cholesterol reduces levels of protein Arc needed for memory storage, and may lead to Alzheimer’s
Researchers at Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet who fed junk food to mice for nine months have shown that a diet rich in cholesterol, fat and sugar increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of dementia.
“On examining the brains of these mice, we found a chemical change not unlike that found in the Alzheimer brain,” said Susanne Akterin, a researcher at the Karolinska Institutet’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, who led the study.
A McDonald’s big mac meal, and mcnuggets meal with french fries, variety of sauces and a corn cup with loads of butter. Source. Image may be subject to copyright.
“We now suspect that a high intake of fat and cholesterol in combination with genetic factors … can adversely affect several brain substances, which can be a contributory factor in the development of Alzheimer’s.”
Alzheimer’s disease, which is incurable, affects the regions of the brain responsible for language, memory and thought.
Chemical changes in the mice brains caused by cholesterol in food showed an abnormal build-up of the protein tau as well as reduced levels of Arc, a protein that facilitates memory storage, Akterin said.
“All in all, the results give some indication of how Alzheimer’s can be prevented, but more research in this field needs to be done before proper advice can be passed on to the general public,” she said.
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