Diabetes and Alzheimer’s Partners in Crime

Initially, it was chalked up to age. It was almost expected that a person with Alzheimer’s disease also suffered from diabetes or some other illness. The thought was that the person was aging and the other disorders were a function of an aging body and not necessarily related per se to Alzheimer’s disease.

Then the researchers started to consider the fact that people with Alzheimer’s disease were often battling other health issues such as: heart disease, stroke and especially diabetes.

Have you ever noticed that “a diet low in fat, and high in fiber, whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables” is good for just about every sickness?

The point here is that good nutrition is good for the body AND the brain. Alzheimer’s disease is sometimes not detected until the person is in the third or fourth stage of the disease. By that time some damage has been done and changes have started to take place. Also, by that time other diseases have already manifested. Specifically, diabetes.

Research has shown that there is a connection between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. So, as you shield yourself against diabetes by eating a high fiber, low fat diet rich in complex carbs and whole grains you are doing “double duty” moreover, protecting yourself against Alzheimer’s disease and vice versa.

In some cases, Alzheimer’s is even being called type 3 diabetes.

You can get detailed information about the types of diabetes from Battling Diabetes. Click the links for information regarding type 1 diabetes, often diagnosed in children, teens and young adults, where the body ceases insulin production, and type 2 diabetes, where the body produces insulin, but not an adequate supply. In 2007, Time and USA Today ran stories about the link between Alzheimer’s and diabetes. Health.Dailynews.com even characterized Alzheimer’s disease as a form of diabetes. Suggesting that,

“Insulin disappears early and dramatically in Alzheimer’s disease,” In addition, “Many of the unexplained features of Alzheimer’s, such as cell death and tangles in the brain, appear to be linked to abnormalities in insulin signaling. This demonstrates that the disease is most likely a neuroendocrine disorder, or another type of diabetes,” said senior researcher Suzanne M. de la Monte, a neuropathologist at Rhode Island Hospital and a professor of pathology at Brown University Medical School.

In the end, it is more important to eat a balanced, nutritious diet that is low in fat and cholesterol; get plenty of exercise and address total health needs than to get all stressed about potentially getting Alzheimer’s disease. The research seems to suggest that a healthy body leads to a healthy brain.

What’s your experience? Are you providing care for someone who has Alzheimer’s AND another illness?