THEY say we are what we eat. But if we respond to a high-fat diet in the same way as mice, as well as piling on the pounds, we may have to contend with Alzheimer’s disease.
Previous studies suggested that high cholesterol levels are a risk factor for the disease, but no one understood why. So Narayan Bhat from the Medical University of South Carolina fed mice a high cholesterol diet for two months. Their working memory declined and their beta amyloid levels went up – this is the protein that forms plaques in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s.…
