Researchers at Rutgers Well being have found that stomach fats could have a extra vital affect on mind well being and cognition in middle-aged males at excessive danger of Alzheimer’s illness in comparison with girls.
A examine printed within the journal Weight problems, led by Michal Schnaider Beeri from Rutgers Mind Well being Institute, examined the connection between stomach fats and mind well being in middle-aged people with a household historical past of Alzheimer’s illness. The examine, which concerned 204 wholesome middle-aged people with a household historical past of Alzheimer’s, used MRI to measure fats within the pancreas, liver, and stomach.
Based on Beeri, greater ranges of pancreatic fats in middle-aged males at excessive danger of Alzheimer’s illness had been related to decrease cognitive operate and smaller mind volumes. Nonetheless, this affiliation was not noticed in girls, indicating a possible sex-specific hyperlink between stomach fats and mind well being.
Weight problems is understood to extend the chance of cognitive decline and dementia, however the relationship differs between women and men. The examine emphasizes the significance of contemplating intercourse variations when finding out the affect of fats distribution on mind growing old and cognition.
Moreover, the examine challenges the traditional use of physique mass index (BMI) as the first measure of obesity-related cognitive dangers. Based on the researchers, BMI doesn’t adequately signify fats distribution and fails to account for intercourse variations.
Sapir Golan Shekhtman, a Ph.D. scholar concerned within the examine, acknowledged that the correlations between stomach fats and cognitive operate had been stronger than these between BMI and cognition. This means that stomach fats, quite than BMI, may very well be a extra vital danger issue for cognitive decline and dementia.
The examine’s findings open the door for particular interventions and deeper investigation into varied strategies for decreasing the affect of stomach fats on mind well being. Understanding these relationships might result in more practical methods for stopping cognitive decline and dementia in at-risk people.
