The role of diet and liraglutide in preventing dementia

As part of the Alzheimer Association International Conference, held this summer in Philadelphia, the association unveiled two key studies to advance dementia research. One highlights the role of a healthy diet in brain health, and the other concerns liraglutide, a GLP-1 agonist well-known for its effects on diabetes and weight loss.A team of researchers followed over 130,000 people for up to 43 years to assess the link between red meat and dementia. Every two to four years, participants’ diets were assessed according to how often they consumed a portion of processed red meat (bacon, hot dogs, sausages, bologna or other processed meat sandwiches), and nuts and legumes (peanut butter, walnuts, soy milk, beans, lentils, tofu or soy protein). Replacing processed meat with nuts People who consumed at least one-quarter of a serving of processed red meat or more per day (or two servings of bacon, bologna or other processed red meats per week) had a 14% higher risk of dementia than those who consumed less than one-tenth of a daily serving, or three servings per month. Furthermore, each additional daily portion of processed red meat was associated with 1.6 additional years of global cognitive aging, including language and executive function, and 1.69 additional years of cognitive aging in verbal memory. In contrast, replacing one serving of processed red meat with one serving of nuts, legumes or tofu each day can reduce the risk of dementia by 20%, and overall cognitive aging by 1.37 years. “Consumption of processed red meat could be a significant risk factor for dementia. Dietary guidelines could include recommendations limiting this practice to promoting brain health,” noted Yuhan Li, research assistant in the Channing Division of Network Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and lead author of the study, quoted in an Alzheimer’s Association press release.Other studies show that processed red meat increases the risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes. “It can affect the brain because it contains high levels of harmful substances like nitrites (preservatives) and sodium,” Li said. The second study points to the role of liraglutide, a GLP-1 agonist, in slowing cognitive decline by protecting the brain. Led by Dr. Paul Edison, professor of Science at Imperial College London, U.K., researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial on 204 patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease at 24 clinics in the U.K. Each patient received a daily subcutaneous injection for one year: One-half received up to 1.8 mg of liraglutide, and the other half received a placebo.According to their observations, liraglutide reduced contraction of the parts of the brain that control memory, learning, language and decision-making by almost 50% compared with placebo, and reduced patients’ cognitive decline by up to 18% after one year’s treatment compared with placebo. “The slower loss of brain volume suggests that liraglutide protects the brain, just as statins protect the heart,” said Dr. Edison, quoted in an association release. “Although more research is needed, liraglutide may work through a variety of mechanisms, such as reducing inflammation in the brain, reducing insulin resistance and the toxic effects of Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers amyloid-beta and tau, and improving the way nerve cells in the brain communicate.” The fact that GLP-1 agonists, such as liraglutide, are already approved for other conditions such as diabetes and weight loss, allowed researchers to build on previous research and practical uses. Currently, three brands of liraglutide have been approved by Health Canada for diabetes (Saxenda, Victoza, Xultophy).

The role of diet and liraglutide in preventing dementia

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