Every year some 1.3 million Americans are diagnosed with adult-onset, or Type 2, diabetes, a pattern tied to the country's caloric overindulgence. Between 16 and 17 million people have Type 2 diabetes, and the projected total for 2025 is about 25 million.
Type 2 diabetics have lost sensitivity to insulin, a hormone that shuttles sugar into the body's cells. At its worst, the disease wreaks havoc on blood vessels, causing blindness, poor circulation, and heart disease. But what is not as widely known is that diabetes also causes cognitive decline, from a subtle loss of mental acuity to a heightened risk for Alzheimer's disease.
A study indicates that women with Type 2 diabetes have a four-fold increased risk of major cognitive decline than nondiabetic women. Specifically, when tracked over time, diabetic women fare worse on verbal tests. (For unknown reasons, the effect was not as large for men.)
One study found diabetics have a 65 percent higher risk of developing Alzheimer's. Researchers speculate that heart disease, nerve damage or hardening brain arteries, all associated with diabetes, diminish mental performance. "It's possible that the process going on in the brain is akin to small blood-vessel disease," says Alka Kanaya, assistant professor of medicine at the University of California in San Francisco. Small blood-vessel disease causes "ministrokes" that go unnoticed but erode neural-cell communication.
But having diabetes does not seal one's cognitive fate. The effect was strongest among people who didn't control their blood-sugar levels, Kanaya says. Thus, closely monitoring glucose levels may be the key to preserving mental sharpness.
Heart disease, which so often accompanies diabetes, and its attendant blood-vessel damage, is thought to be the link between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease as well.
Of course, preventing diabetes is the best protection. For those who are overweight, Kanaya says losing 5 percent of body fat and exercising 30 minutes a day make an excellent defense.
A Mighty Mineral
Although exercise is the most potent weapon against diabetes, several studies have found that the mineral chromium may improve diabetes control. Chromium is required by the body to make glucose tolerance factor, which helps insulin move energy from the blood into the body's cells. Best sources include mushrooms, whole grains and liver.
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