(Newswire.net — December 5, 2013) Portland, OR — The study pulished on August 2, 2013 involved more than 2,000 people and tracked blood sugar over time in people with and without diabetes to see how it may affect the risk for Alzheimer’s.
Looking at those with diabetes, those with higher blood sugar were 40% more liketly to develop dementia than those with lower glucose diabetes. The study followed up on individuals after seven years and found that 25% had developed dementia, mostly in the form of Alzheimer’s.
Even those who did not start with diabetes, the individuals with higher glucose levels had an 18% greater risk of devloping dementia.
The most common form of diabetes is type 2. In this form, the body has a reduced ability to properly utilize insulin. This can result in increased blood sugar levels which can end up damaging major organs, including the brain, and ultimately lead to death.
Continuing research has shown that maintaining proper cognitive skills demands a consistent healthy glucose brain metabolism.
A compromised metabolism can lead to a breakdown in cognitive function and has a harmful effect on brain health by reducing brain glucose transporters.
In many neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s, neurons in certain regions of the brain have become insulin resistant. Insulin is the necessary hormone that brings glucose into cells where it can be used for energy. This is Diabetes in the brain. When brain cells become resistant to insulin they are unable to get glucose and they become malnourished and begin to die.
Coconut oil is considered one of the best fuels for healthy brain function. Outside of mother’s milk, coconut oil is nature’s richest source of medium chain triglycerides (MCTs). Medium chain triglycerides (MCT) are not processed by your body in the same manner as long chain triglycerides. Normal fat metabolism depends on bile salts that have been released from your gallbladder before it can be broken down in your digestive system.
MCTs bypass bile metabolism and go directly to your liver where they are converted into ketones. The liver then immediately releases the ketones into the bloodstream where they are transported to the brain to be used as fuel. Research has shown that the ketone bodies produced by MCTs provide a stable source of energy for the brain during periods of low blood sugar without the neurological risks associated with high blood sugar.