Grain consumption appears strongly protective against Alzheimer’s disease, whereas animal fat intake has been linked to dementia risk.
Alzheimer’s Disease: Grain Brain or Meathead?
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Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
The rates of dementia differ greatly around the world, from the lowest rates in Africa and India, South Asia, to the highest rates in Western Europe, and especially North America. Is it all just genetics?
Well, the incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is “significantly lower” for Africans in Nigeria “than for African Americans…in Indianapolis,” for example—up to five times lower.
Alzheimer’s rates for Japanese-Americans living in the U.S. are closer to that of Americans than to Japanese. So, “when people of one ethnic group move…from their homeland to the United States,…Alzheimer’s rates [can increase] dramatically.”
“Therefore, when Africans or [Asians] live in the [U.S.] and adopt a Western diet, their [increase in] Alzheimer’s [risk suggests] that [it’s] not the genetics.”
Unfortunately, one doesn’t have to move to the West to adopt a Western diet. The prevalence of dementia in Japan has shot up over the last few decades. “Mechanisms to explain [this in Japan] include increases in cholesterol, saturated fat, and iron from increases in [the consumption of] animal products. Traditional diets generally…are weighted toward vegetable products such as grains and away from animal products.” But, “[s]ince 1960, the diet in Japan has changed from [a more] traditional [rice-based] diet…to one with a preponderance of meat.”
“From 1961 to 2008, meat and animal fat increased considerably, whereas [the] rice supply [dropped].”
The dietary factor most strongly associated with the rise in Alzheimer’s disease in Japan was the increased consumption of animal fat. A similar analysis in China arrived at the same conclusion.
“On the basis of [these] findings…, the rate of [Alzheimer’s disease] and dementia will continue to rise…unless dietary patterns change to those with less reliance on animal products.”
This is consistent with data showing those who eat vegetarian appear two to three times less likely to become demented. And, the longer one eats meat-free, the lower the associated risk of dementia.
Globally, the lowest validated rates of Alzheimer’s in the world are rural India, where they eat low-meat, high-grain, high-bean, high-carb diets. Now, it’s possible the apparent protective association between rice and Alzheimer’s “is more likely due” to the fact that the drop of rice consumption associated with increasing Alzheimer’s was accompanied by a rise in meat consumption.
But, other population studies have found that dietary grains appear strongly protective in relation to Alzheimer’s disease. In other words, perhaps, don’t pass on the grain; pass the grain, to spare the brain.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- W B Grant. Dietary links to Alzheimer's disease: 1999 Update. J Alzheimers Dis 1999 1(4):197 – 201.
- W B Grant. Trends in diet and Alzheimer's disease during the nutrition transition in Japan and developing countries. J Alzheimers Dis 2014 38(3):611 – 620.
- W B Grant. Dietary links to Alzheimer's disease. Alz Dis Rev 1997 2:42 – 55.
- L White, H Petrovitch, G W Ross, K H Masaki, R D Abbott, E L Teng, B L Rodriguez, P L Blanchette, R J Havlik, G Wergowske. Prevalence of dementia in older Japanese-American men in Hawaii: The Honolulu-Asia aging study. Jama 1996 276(12):955 – 960.
- H C Hendrie, A Ogunniyi, K S Hall, O Baiyewu, F W Unverzagt, O Gureje, S Gao, R M Evans, A O Ogunseyinde, A O Adeyinka. Incidence of Dementia and Alzheimer disease in 2 communities: Yoruba residing in Ibadan, Nigeria, and African Americans residing in Indianapolis, Indiana. Jama 2001 285(6):739 – 747.
- C P Ferri, M Prince, C Brayne, H Brodaty, L Fratiglioni, M Ganguli, K Hall, K Hasegawa, H Hendrie, Y Huang. Global prevalence of dementia: A Delphi consensus study. Lancet 2006 366(9503):2112 – 2117.
- K Y Chan, W Wang, J J Wu, L Liu, E Theodoratou, J Car, L Middleton, T C Russ, I J Deary, H Campbell, W Wang, I Rudan. Epidemiology of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia in China, 1990-2010: A systematic review and analysis. Lancet 2013 381(9882):2016 – 2023.
- J E Galvin. Pass the grain; spare the brain. Neurology 2007 69(11):1072 – 1073.
- R P Clarke. Incidence of dementia and Alzheimer disease in Nigeria and the United States. JAMA 2001 285(19):2448 – 2449.
- M A Smith, G J Petot, G Perry. Diet and oxidative stress: A novel synthesis of epidemiological data on Alzheimer's disease. J Alzheimers Dis 1999 1(4 - 5):203 – 206.
- Giem P, Beeson WL, Fraser GE. The incidence of dementia and intake of animal products: preliminary findings from the Adventist Health Study. Neuroepidemiology. 1993;12(1):28-36.
- Chandra V, Ganguli M, Pandav R, Johnston J, Belle S, DeKosky ST. Prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in rural India: the Indo-US study. Neurology. 1998 Oct;51(4):1000-8.
Images thanks to kresbicky via deviant art.
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
The rates of dementia differ greatly around the world, from the lowest rates in Africa and India, South Asia, to the highest rates in Western Europe, and especially North America. Is it all just genetics?
Well, the incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is “significantly lower” for Africans in Nigeria “than for African Americans…in Indianapolis,” for example—up to five times lower.
Alzheimer’s rates for Japanese-Americans living in the U.S. are closer to that of Americans than to Japanese. So, “when people of one ethnic group move…from their homeland to the United States,…Alzheimer’s rates [can increase] dramatically.”
“Therefore, when Africans or [Asians] live in the [U.S.] and adopt a Western diet, their [increase in] Alzheimer’s [risk suggests] that [it’s] not the genetics.”
Unfortunately, one doesn’t have to move to the West to adopt a Western diet. The prevalence of dementia in Japan has shot up over the last few decades. “Mechanisms to explain [this in Japan] include increases in cholesterol, saturated fat, and iron from increases in [the consumption of] animal products. Traditional diets generally…are weighted toward vegetable products such as grains and away from animal products.” But, “[s]ince 1960, the diet in Japan has changed from [a more] traditional [rice-based] diet…to one with a preponderance of meat.”
“From 1961 to 2008, meat and animal fat increased considerably, whereas [the] rice supply [dropped].”
The dietary factor most strongly associated with the rise in Alzheimer’s disease in Japan was the increased consumption of animal fat. A similar analysis in China arrived at the same conclusion.
“On the basis of [these] findings…, the rate of [Alzheimer’s disease] and dementia will continue to rise…unless dietary patterns change to those with less reliance on animal products.”
This is consistent with data showing those who eat vegetarian appear two to three times less likely to become demented. And, the longer one eats meat-free, the lower the associated risk of dementia.
Globally, the lowest validated rates of Alzheimer’s in the world are rural India, where they eat low-meat, high-grain, high-bean, high-carb diets. Now, it’s possible the apparent protective association between rice and Alzheimer’s “is more likely due” to the fact that the drop of rice consumption associated with increasing Alzheimer’s was accompanied by a rise in meat consumption.
But, other population studies have found that dietary grains appear strongly protective in relation to Alzheimer’s disease. In other words, perhaps, don’t pass on the grain; pass the grain, to spare the brain.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- W B Grant. Dietary links to Alzheimer's disease: 1999 Update. J Alzheimers Dis 1999 1(4):197 – 201.
- W B Grant. Trends in diet and Alzheimer's disease during the nutrition transition in Japan and developing countries. J Alzheimers Dis 2014 38(3):611 – 620.
- W B Grant. Dietary links to Alzheimer's disease. Alz Dis Rev 1997 2:42 – 55.
- L White, H Petrovitch, G W Ross, K H Masaki, R D Abbott, E L Teng, B L Rodriguez, P L Blanchette, R J Havlik, G Wergowske. Prevalence of dementia in older Japanese-American men in Hawaii: The Honolulu-Asia aging study. Jama 1996 276(12):955 – 960.
- H C Hendrie, A Ogunniyi, K S Hall, O Baiyewu, F W Unverzagt, O Gureje, S Gao, R M Evans, A O Ogunseyinde, A O Adeyinka. Incidence of Dementia and Alzheimer disease in 2 communities: Yoruba residing in Ibadan, Nigeria, and African Americans residing in Indianapolis, Indiana. Jama 2001 285(6):739 – 747.
- C P Ferri, M Prince, C Brayne, H Brodaty, L Fratiglioni, M Ganguli, K Hall, K Hasegawa, H Hendrie, Y Huang. Global prevalence of dementia: A Delphi consensus study. Lancet 2006 366(9503):2112 – 2117.
- K Y Chan, W Wang, J J Wu, L Liu, E Theodoratou, J Car, L Middleton, T C Russ, I J Deary, H Campbell, W Wang, I Rudan. Epidemiology of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia in China, 1990-2010: A systematic review and analysis. Lancet 2013 381(9882):2016 – 2023.
- J E Galvin. Pass the grain; spare the brain. Neurology 2007 69(11):1072 – 1073.
- R P Clarke. Incidence of dementia and Alzheimer disease in Nigeria and the United States. JAMA 2001 285(19):2448 – 2449.
- M A Smith, G J Petot, G Perry. Diet and oxidative stress: A novel synthesis of epidemiological data on Alzheimer's disease. J Alzheimers Dis 1999 1(4 - 5):203 – 206.
- Giem P, Beeson WL, Fraser GE. The incidence of dementia and intake of animal products: preliminary findings from the Adventist Health Study. Neuroepidemiology. 1993;12(1):28-36.
- Chandra V, Ganguli M, Pandav R, Johnston J, Belle S, DeKosky ST. Prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in rural India: the Indo-US study. Neurology. 1998 Oct;51(4):1000-8.
Images thanks to kresbicky via deviant art.
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Title
Alzheimer’s Disease: Grain Brain or Meathead?
LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Content URLDoctor's Note
A few previous videos on Alzheimer’s and maintaining cognitive function:
- Saffron for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s
- Alzheimer’s & Apple Juice
- Does Coconut Oil Cure Alzheimer’s?
- How to Slow Brain Aging by Two Years
More on the consequences of carbophobia here:
- Atkins Diet: Trouble Keeping It Up
- Paleolithic Lessons
- Whole Grains May Work as Well as Drugs
- Low-Carb Diets & Coronary Blood Flow
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