Diabetes research could aid in Alzheimer's fight
.
Alzheimer's Donation
Donate Online Now
.

A growing body of scientific evidence showing strong links between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease could have major health implications for a Canadian population that is getting older and fatter.
Several recent studies suggest Type 2 diabetes, a mounting concern in Canada and around the world that is usually associated with obesity, increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease by up to 70 per cent and adds dementia to the arsenal of plagues already threatening diabetics, including heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and amputations. Experts say the global explosion of diabetes could substantially increase the burden of Alzheimer's disease, which is already set to become bigger as baby boomers turn 60 this year and fast approach the age of highest risk for developing the deadly form of dementia. The link between the two common maladies -- buildup of a sticky, gunky plaque called beta-amyloid that clogs up brain cells in those with Alzheimer's, and was also recently discovered in the pancreases of people with Type 2 diabetes -- is leading researchers around the world to seriously ponder whether both are actually different forms of the same disease.

Several studies also found that people with poor blood-sugar control have a higher risk of Alzheimer's. These discoveries, Dr. Diamond said, "are opening up an entirely new thinking about Alzheimer's disease. . . . The particular risk factor for Alzheimer's that seems to be genuinely increasing most is diabetes, and that will mean an increase in Alzheimer's disease numbers."