Obesity significantly increases risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s: study

By Isobel Williams via SWNS

Obesity significantly increases the risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson's disease, reveals a new study.

American researchers have discovered a link between obesity and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.

They discovered that a high-sugar diet leads to insulin resistance in the brain which impairs the clean-up of neuronal waste, increasing the risk of neurodegeneration.

The delay in clean-up of this neuronal debris can also result in inflammation, neuronal death and poor nervous system recovery.

The findings, published in the journal PLOS Biology, chose to look at high-sugar diets specifically as overconsumption of sugar is the leading cause of obesity and other conditions such as type 2 diabetes.

To get the results they studied the common fruit fly which has lots of similarities to humans.

Having previously shown that a high-sugar diet leads to insulin resistance in the peripheral organs of flies, the researchers turned to their brains.

Study author Dr. Mroj Alassaf, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre, said: “With increased life expectancy, age-related neurodegenerative disorders are expected to rise, placing a tremendous burden on the healthcare system.

“Large-scale epidemiological studies have found that mid-life obesity is an independent risk factor for developing neurodegenerative disorders.

“This study provides insight into how obesity-inducing diets potentially contribute to the increased risk of neurodegenerative disorders.”

Exactly how one leads to the other remains a mystery, but this study brings us a lot closer to understanding the correlation.