Lower Your Carbs and Lower Your Alzheimer’s Risk | Atkins

October 21, 2012

A recent study funded by the National Institute on Aging from the Mayo Clinic and published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease has found that people 70 and older who eat food high in carbohydrates have nearly four times the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment, and the danger also rises with a diet heavy in sugar. The study found that people who consume more protein and fat relative to carbohydrates are less likely to become cognitively impaired.

This is consistent with what I’ve written about in past blogs, and it has been shown in past-published research on how a lower carbohydrate diet can help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s. This is further evidence that a lower-carbohydrate, lower sugar diet with higher proteins and higher fats is a healthy eating approach and will help reduce the risk for cognitive impairment.

The researchers tracked 1,230 people ages 70 to 89 who provided information on what they ate during the previous year. Their cognitive function was evaluated by an expert panel of physicians, nurses and neuropsychologists. Of participants, 940 had no signs of cognitive impairment and were asked to return for follow-up evaluations of their cognitive function. Four years into the study, 200 of the 940 were beginning to show mild cognitive impairment, problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment that are greater than normal age-related changes.