Losing Weight Can Keep the Brain Young

According to new research, a larger waistline may cause your brain to age more quickly and place you at greater risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

The link was established after overweight and obese people were found to have brains that looked as much as eight to 16 years older than people of a normal weight. The areas of the brain affected included those used for planning, memory and executive function.

In addition, obese people’s brains were found to be more susceptible to development of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Excess weight has been consistently linked to development of Alzheimer’s over the last decade. This is partly because higher amounts of adipose tissue (fat tissue) can promote insulin resistance leading to diabetes. Diabetes can result in elevated levels of glucose and insulin, which may lead to higher levels of damage in the brain. In fact, obesity combined with diabetes can raise the risk of Alzheimer’s more than four-fold.

This news has medical researchers worried. Foresight warns that the present obesity epidemic and increasing prevalence of diabetes in the U.S. will lead to a future epidemic of Alzheimer’s.

Obesity is already implicated as the “single biggest reason for the increase in health care costs” in USA TODAY. These costs, however, would be no match for what it would take to care for millions of patients with Alzheimer’s, a seriously debilitating disease with no cure.

While drug companies race for future treatments targeting Alzheimer’s disease, health researchers are focusing on using weight loss as the single most important preventive therapy.

Other supporting dietary therapies may be higher intake of fruits and vegetables as well as higher intake of fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids.