Written by Marcia J. Egles, MD. In research with 49 adults with an average age of 54, those with highest intakes of vitamin B12 in their diet, had better levels of a marker for Alzheimer’s disease.
There is increasing evidence (2,3,5,6 ) that nutrition may be an important factor in delaying or preventing Alzheimer’s disease. Currently worldwide, more than 35 million individuals are afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease, and these numbers are expected to quadruple by 2050 [4]. A preliminary study from New York University School of Medicine linked higher intakes of several nutrients to healthier brain scan pictures in asymptomatic individuals at risk for Alzheimer’s disease.
The study participants consisted of 30 women and 19 men aged 25 to 72, with an average age of 54 years. They were recruited from multiple community sources, and some were relatives of impaired Alzheimer patients. Sixty-nine per cent of the group had a family history of Alzheimer’s disease. Thirty-nine per cent of the participants were found to have the APOE-epsilon4 gene, which may be associated with Alzheimer’s disease. All the subjects were clinically assessed to be cognitively normal without dementia or significant depression or other major mental illness.
The participants completed dietary questionnaires to tally nutrient intakes. Ten nutrients previously reported in other research studies to have importance to brain health (5,6 ) received primary focus in this study. The ten included saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), omega-6 PUFA, beta-carotene, vitamin B-12, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E and folate.
The subjects all received two specialized brain scans used in Alzheimer’s brain research. One scan is a positron emission tomography (PET) with C-Pittsburgh Compound-B (PiB) which is a measure of amyloid-beta protein quantities in the brain. Abnormal accumulations of amyloid-beta (also known as beta-amyloid) are a feature of Alzheimer’s disease. The other special scan was a glucose brain metabolism PET scan, called “FDG-PET”. FDG-PET metabolic reductions occur prior to dementia onset and correlate with clinical Alzheimer symptoms. The study then looked to define which nutrients from the intake questionnaires might be associated with lower Alzheimer disease burden found by the PET scans. Lower Alzheimer disease burden in these asymptomatic patients was considered to be relatively lower amyloid- beta and higher brain glucose metabolic rates.
After controlling for age and total caloric intake, higher intakes of vitamin B12 (p less than 0.05), vitamin D (p less than 0.05) and the omega-3PUFA EPA (p less than 0.04) were associated with lower amyloid beta loads on the PiB PET scans. These associations were all independent of gender, gene, or family history. Higher intakes of beta-carotene and folate were associated with higher glucose metabolism on FDG-PET (p less than 0.05). Even more, women and individuals with the APOE-epsilon4 gene, and those with Alzheimer’s disease family history, showed the strongest impact between beta-carotene and folate on brain glucose metabolism as compared to those without these risk factors. Also, women in the study showed significant ( p less than 0.05) negative associations between saturated fat intake and glucose metabolism on FDG-PET scan while no such association was found in men. (1).
Overall, the study authors suggested that Alzheimer-disease protective nutrients might be associated with a higher intake of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, fish, and legumes and with a lower intake of high-fat dairies, processed meat and sweets.
This small, cross-sectional observation type study is part of a larger ongoing study seeking to determine the role of nutrition in Alzheimer’s disease.
Source: Mosconi, Lisa, et al. “Nutrient intake and brain biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease in at-risk cognitively normal individuals: a cross-sectional neuroimaging pilot study.” BMJ open 4.6 (2014): e004850.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited. Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 3.0) license,. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/
Click here to read the full text study.
Posted February 9. 2015.
Marcia Egles, MD, graduated from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1986. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at St. Louis University Hospital. Dr. Egles is certified in Internal Medicine and is a member of the American College of Physicians. She resides in Avon, IN with her husband and two sons.
References:
- Mosconi, Lisa et al. “ Nutrient-intake and brain biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease in at-risk cognitively normal individuals: a cross-sectional neuroimaging pilot study”, BMJ Open 2014.
- Scarmeas N, Stern Y, Tang MX, et al. Mediterranean diet and risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Ann Neurol 2006;59:912–21.
- Mohajeri MH, Troesch B, Weber P. Inadequate supply of vitamins and DHA in the elderly: Implications for brain aging and Alzheimer-type dementia. 2015 Feb;31(2):261-275. doi: 10.1016/j.nut.2014.06.016.
- Hebert, L.E., Scherr, P.A., Bienias, J.L., Bennett, D.A., and Evans, D.A. Alzheimer disease in the US population: prevalence estimates using the 2000 census. Arch Neurol. 2003; 60: 1119–1122.
- Gu Y, Nieves JW, Stern Y, et al. Food combination and Alzheimer disease risk: a protective diet. Arch Neurol 2010;67:699–706.
- Gu Y, Schupf N, Cosentino SA, et al. Nutrient intake and plasma beta-amyloid. Neurology 2012;78:1832–40.
