How Alzheimer’s Could Be Type 2 Diabetes

The link between Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes continues to grow stronger. A new study presented at the Society for Neuroscience shows that the disease may actually be the late stages of type 2 diabetes.

Learn more about how Alzheimer’s could be type 2 diabetes.

The Correlation Between Alzheimer’s and Type 2 Diabetes

A new study done by researchers at Albany University in New York, shows that Alzheimer’s may be the late stages of type 2 diabetes.

People who have type 2 diabetes produce extra insulin. That insulin can get into the brain, disrupting brain chemistry and leading toxic proteins that poison brain cells to form. The protein that forms in both Alzheimer’s patients and people with type 2 diabetes is the same protein.

Researcher Edward McNay at Albany University, said:

“People who develop diabetes have to realize this is about more than controlling their weight or diet. It’s also the first step on the road to cognitive decline. At first they won’t be able to keep up with their kids playing games, but in 30 years’ time they may not even recognize them.”

Alzheimer’s, Brain Tangles and Diabetes

In the past few years, the connection between the two diseases has grown stronger with each relevant study. People who develop type 2 diabetes often experience a sharp decline in cognitive function and almost 70% of them ultimately develop Alzheimer’s.

A recent study published in the journal Neurology found that people with type 2 diabetes were more likely to develop the brain “tangles” commonly see in people with Alzheimer’s disease. They found that participants with type 2 diabetes were more likely to have the brain tangles, even if they did not have dementia or memory loss.

The study evaluated over 120 older adults with type 2 diabetes and 700 people without diabetes. Some did have dementia or Alzheimer’s while others had signs of mild cognitive impairment and others had no cognitive impairment. All participants underwent MRI scans and 50% gave cerebrospinal fluid samples so researchers could measure levels of beta-amyloid and tau, two proteins that make up the tangles commonly seen in the brains of people who have Alzheimer’s. They found that overall, people with type 2 diabetes showed more thinning the brain’s cortex and had higher levels of tau protein as evidenced by the spinal fluid which demonstrates an increased level of tangles in the brain.

Senior researcher Dr. Velandai Srikanth, geriatrician at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia believes that type 2 diabetes may cause brain abnormalities that can lead to neurodegenerative conditions, like Alzheimer’s. He also cautions that while the study shows a correlation, it does not prove causation. Other common factors among people with type 2 diabetes, like obesity, chronically high blood sugar levels or even degeneration in brain tissues may be at play.