By anyone’s definition, we must now consider Alzheimer’s disease to be an epidemic. Alzheimer’s is a progressive degenerative neurological condition that actually has its origins decades before the initial symptoms of cognitive decline begin to appear. Unfortunately, by the time these symptoms of the disease emerge—memory loss, cognitive decline, and behavioral shifts—there is very little that can be done as, according to our most well-respected medical journals, there is currently no meaningful pharmaceutical treatment for this condition. Despite this reality, pharmaceutical companies continue to market “Alzheimer’s drugs” to the tune of some $3-4 billion annually. Pharmaceutical Treatments for Alzheimer’s are Failing Us To be clear, a meaningful pharmaceutical intervention for this devastating condition would absolutely be welcomed by patients and healthcare providers alike. However, as of today, the available Alzheimer’s drugs do not address the underlying disease process, they only attempt to address some symptoms. And, in some cases, these Read More
Articles posted in Diabetes
-
-
Diabetes Risk and Impulsivity
Understanding the relationship between less healthful dietary and lifestyle choices and developing type-2 diabetes, a recent study linking the brain’s center for impulsive behavior and diabetes risk was really interesting. The research was performed at the Massachusetts General Hospital and involved 232 non-diabetic subjects. These individuals underwent brain-imaging studies that measured the metabolic activity of their amygdalas, an area of the brain that is involved with fear, stress, and impulsivity. Researchers demonstrated that individuals with an amygdala that showed higher activity were much more likely to later develop diabetes. This risk seemed to be independent of obesity. Even the risk for insulin resistance, the harbinger for diabetes, also correlated with increased activity in the amygdala. There are a lot of interesting ideas that this relationship brings to mind. First, the amygdala is activated by stress. Stress also increases the level of cortisol hormone in the blood, which may then go Read More
-
Diabetes Risk and Impulsivity
Understanding the relationship between less healthful dietary and lifestyle choices and developing type-2 diabetes, a recent study linking the brain’s center for impulsive behavior and diabetes risk was really interesting. The research was performed at the Massachusetts General Hospital and involved 232 non-diabetic subjects. These individuals underwent brain-imaging studies that measured the metabolic activity of their amygdalas, an area of the brain that is involved with fear, stress, and impulsivity. Researchers demonstrated that individuals with an amygdala that showed higher activity were much more likely to later develop diabetes. This risk seemed to be independent of obesity. Even the risk for insulin resistance, the harbinger for diabetes, also correlated with increased activity in the amygdala. There are a lot of interesting ideas that this relationship brings to mind. First, the amygdala is activated by stress. Stress also increases the level of cortisol hormone in the blood, which may then go Read More