New study suggests a fatty diet can impact Alzheimer's

• "You might say that fat is the bomb, and insulin (from carbohydrate) is the fuse," says Richard Feinman, editor of Nutrition and Metabolism, that published the study this week.
• The research, by Samuel Henderson at US pharma firm Accera, runs counter to previous studies suggesting a negative effect of fat on Alzheimer's disease.
• Feinman explains why this latest research has thrown up a new angle.
• "Most studies of the deleterious effects of fat have been done in the presence of high carbohydrate.
• If carbs are high, dietary fat is not oxidised and is instead stored as body fat."
• In association with a group from the University of Washington led by Dr. Suzanne Craft, Henderson has previously shown cognitive improvement in patients with mild AD who were given a diet that raised ketone bodies.
• "Although it is too early to tell how the results will fit into the treatment of AD, the implication for diet in general is also important," underlines Feinman.
• Such diets, he adds, allow dieters to regulate fat and calorie intake by appetite alone as long as carbohydrate intake remains minimal.
• "Henderson's effort is one of several recent studies that point the way to understanding metabolism beyond the issues surrounding simple fat reduction, " says Feinman.
• There are nearly 18 million people with dementia in the world and the most common cause of this dementia is Alzheimer's disease.
• By 2025 this figure is expected to rise to 34 million, with 71 per cent of these likely to live in developing countries.
• Several studies have found an association between intake of omega-3s -- the fatty acid found in high quantities in oily fish -- and reduced risk of dementia, although a recent trial failed to link the presence of these fats in the diet with slower cognitive decline.