Until recently the brain was thought to be a insulin-insensitive organ. It has been discovered that there are various actions of insulin in the brain. Insulin acts on the hypothalamus to control brain metabolism and body energy balance. Insulin signaling also plays an important role in all aspects of memory. It is required for synaptic plasticity and learning.
Amyloid plaques are a key trait of Alzheimer’s and for a long time was thought to be the reason for memory loss. After examining brains post mortem there is no correlation between the amyloid plaques and memory loss. The cognitive decline was found to be connected to synapse damage.
Alzheimer’s and diabetes have very similar pathophysiological and clinical traits. Brains with Alzheimer’s disease have defective insulin signaling which leads to synaptic dysfunction and memory issues.
There is currently research being done to discover if the mechanisms that underly impaired peripheral insulin signaling in type 2 diabetes and alzheimer’s are related.
So what does this mean? This means that there may be a direct link between the underlying mechanisms of type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s. The current mechanism of Alzheimer’s is pretty unclear. It cannot be diagnosed until after death and because of that it is even more difficult to study.
Now we see that having a healthy lifestyle may not only save you from type 2 diabetes but also Alzheimer’s disease.
That might not be enough for some people, fortunately diabetes are a well researched and treated field. It is difficult to treat Alzheimer’s, because we don’t understand the mechanism. Finding this connection could lead to some treatment choices after the damage has begun. Using anti diabetic treatments for patients with memory loss could be on the horizon.
Alzheimer's and Diabetes: The Link We've Been Missing
