Detailed Information on Which These Conclusions are Based:

It has long been noted that insulin levels in Alzheimer's patients decline as the disease progresses.  Now that scientists have pinpointed insulin and its growth factors as contributors to Alzheimer's, this opens the way for targeted treatment to the brain and changes the way we view Alzheimer's disease.

Insulin and its related proteins are produced in the brain as well as the pancreas, and  reduced levels of these contribute to the degeneration of brain cells, an early symptom of Alzheimer's disease. The finding raises the possibility of a Type 3 diabetes which leads to Alzheimer's.

It is interesting to note that, "A well-defined risk factor for late onset AD is possession of one or more alleles of the epsilon-4 variant (E4) of the apolipoprotein E gene. Meta-analysis of allele frequencies has found that E4 is rare in populations with long historical exposure to agriculture, suggesting that consumption of a high carbohydrate (HC) diet may have selected against E4 carriers."(8).   With the Alzheimer's - diabetes link established this theory has been put forward in an attempt to explain different Alzheimer's rates in different cultures and populations. 

Here are the findings of some of the more pertinent recent studies:

1. Insulin-degrading enzyme may affect risk of Alzheimer's disease
Study released March 7, 2005, reported in the March issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

"What we found is that insulin is not just produced in the pancreas, but also in the brain. And we discovered that insulin and its growth factors, which are necessary for the survival of brain cells, contribute to the progression of Alzheimer's," says senior author Suzanne M. de la Monte, a neuropathologist at Rhode Island Hospital and a professor of pathology at Brown Medical School. "This raises the possibility of a Type 3 diabetes."

It was previously noted that insulin resistance, a characteristic of diabetes, is tied to neurodegeneration. While scientists have suspected a link between diabetes and Alzheimer's disease, this is the first study to provide evidence of that connection.

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