Could eating too much junk food give you Alzheimer's?

By JEROME BURNE

If you constantly eat high glycaemic foods, such as cakes and white bread, this pushes up the amount of sugar in your blood Alzheimer’s is one of the major medical problems of our age. A ghastly disease that condemns millions to years of confusion and fear, it also threatens to bankrupt our health system — yet doctors don’t really know what causes it, or how to treat it effectively. But could that be about to change?

The key to diabetes, and very possibly to Alzheimer's, is insulin resistance Scientists increasingly believe Alzheimer’s is linked to type 2 diabetes — so closely linked, in fact, it’s even being called ‘brain diabetes’ or type 3 diabetes. This surprising new theory holds out hope that treatments already available for diabetes may also be able to help dementia sufferers, slowing down or stopping the progression of the disease. When it comes to type 2 diabetes, there’s no mystery about what’s behind the soaring rates — eating too much, especially junk food that’s packed with sugar, refined carbohydrates and fat. This leads to damagingly high levels of sugar in the blood and high levels of insulin needed to clear it away. The rising levels of glucose and insulin affect the blood vessels of the heart and extremities, potentially leading to blindness and amputations. But it seems raised insulin levels also affect the brain. Recent research has found this hormone plays a much more important role in the brain than once thought — protecting cells and helping to lay down memories. The key to diabetes, and very possibly to Alzheimer’s, is insulin resistance. source: dailymail