Dementia Flashcards
What is dementia and how is it defined clinically?
Dementia is a neurocognitive disorder characterized by a significant decline in cognitive function from a previously attained level, affecting memory, reasoning, and the ability to perform daily tasks.
What is Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and what are its 5 main symptoms?
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. It involves memory loss, cognitive decline, executive dysfunction, and personality and behavioral changes, often impacting daily functioning.
What are the 5 primary risk factors for developing Alzheimer’s disease?
Risk factors include older age, female sex (women are twice as likely), family history, low- and middle-income countries, and genetic mutations such as APOE4.
What brain changes are typically seen in Alzheimer’s disease?
AD is associated with accumulation of amyloid-beta plaques and tau protein tangles, leading to loss of neurons and glial cells, disrupting neural networks and impairing brain structure and function.
What are 9 possible causes of dementia beyond Alzheimer’s disease?
Possible causes include traumatic brain injury, vascular damage, Lewy body disease, frontotemporal dementia, Huntington’s disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, infections, immune disorders, and nutritional deficiencies.
What are 9 modifiable risk factors for dementia prevention?
Modifiable risk factors include smoking, alcohol use, physical inactivity, cardiovascular disease, air pollution, poor diet, sleep problems, depression, and social isolation.
What role does insulin resistance play in Alzheimer’s disease?
Insulin resistance in the brain impairs glucose uptake, leading to energy deficits and neuronal death. It also increases amyloid plaque formation and tau hyperphosphorylation, promoting neurodegeneration.
Why is Alzheimer’s disease sometimes referred to as “type 3 diabetes”?
Because neurons become insulin-resistant, impairing glucose metabolism, similar to type 2 diabetes, and leading to cognitive decline.
How do ketone bodies affect brain metabolism in dementia?
Ketone bodies serve as alternative fuel when glucose metabolism is impaired. They increase cerebral metabolic rate, potentially improving neuronal function in Alzheimer’s disease.
What is the ketogenic diet and how might it benefit individuals with Alzheimer’s disease?
The ketogenic diet is high in fat, moderate in protein, and low in carbohydrates. It promotes ketone production, which may improve cognitive function, reduce neuroinflammation, and enhance brain metabolism.
What are medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), and why are they relevant to dementia?
MCTs are fats rapidly converted into ketones. They are found in coconut oil and breast milk and can improve brain energy supply in dementia, especially when given as supplements.
What evidence supports the use of the ketogenic diet in AD patients?
Studies show improved daily functioning, quality of life, and cognitive scores in patients with mild AD, with generally favorable cardiovascular profiles and few adverse effects.
What is the modified Mediterranean ketogenic diet (MMKD), and how does it relate to dementia?
MMKD combines low-carb ketogenic principles with Mediterranean food patterns. It may reverse symptoms and normalize lipidomic profiles linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
What is the proposed multi-loop mechanism of insulin resistance in Alzheimer’s disease?
Hyperinsulinemia leads to amyloid accumulation, which further impairs insulin receptors, creating a cycle of increasing insulin resistance and neurodegeneration.
. How does brain insulin resistance contribute to amyloid and tau pathology?
Insulin resistance decreases degradation of amyloid-beta and disrupts signaling pathways, increasing tau phosphorylation, both contributing to neuronal damage.
What is the MIND diet and how does it relate to cognitive health?
The MIND diet combines the Mediterranean and DASH diets and is thought to support brain health, though studies like SPRINT MIND showed no strong reduction in dementia risk.
What did the COSMOS study reveal about dietary supplementation and memory?
COSMOS showed that daily multivitamin supplementation led to memory improvements in older adults, suggesting a potential low-cost intervention for cognitive aging.
What is intermittent fasting, and how might it support brain health?
Intermittent fasting alternates periods of eating and fasting, which may reduce neuroinflammation, promote synaptic plasticity, enhance insulin sensitivity, and support neurogenesis in dementia models.
What is the fasting-mimicking diet (FMD), and what effects has it shown in AD models?
FMD is a low-calorie, low-protein, high-fat diet mimicking fasting effects. In AD models, it reduced inflammation and tau pathology, promoted neural stem cell growth, and was safe in small human trials.
Why is further research needed despite promising dietary interventions for dementia?
Although ketogenic and fasting-mimicking diets show potential, more large-scale, long-term studies are needed to evaluate efficacy, safety, and consistent protocols for broader recommendations.
