'Good' cholesterol and Alzheimer's disease

Researchers from Columbia University in New York have been looking into the links between 'good' cholesterol - high-density lipoprotein (HDL) - and Alzheimer's disease. They studied 1,130 adults in northern Manhattan none of whom had dementia or cognitive impairment at the start of the study. As the participants were followed over time there were 101 new cases of Alzheimer's disease. Having higher levels of HDL cholesterol was associated with a decreased risk of developing Alzheimer's even after adjusting for vascular (blood vessel) risk factors and cholesterol-lowering treatments. Being Hispanic and having diabetes at the start of the study both increased the risk of developing Alzheimer's.

Cholesterol and Alzheimer's disease

High cholesterol in middle age significantly increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia in old age. Researchers from the Kaiser Permanente health organization in Oakland, California studied 9,844 men and women whose cholesterol levels were measured between the ages of 40 and 45. 30 years later the participants' medical records were reviewed. 469 of them had Alzheimer's disease and 127 had vascular dementia, another form of dementia caused by clogged blood vessels and other conditions affecting blood supply to the brain. The study found that in people with high cholesterol the risk of developing Alzheimer's was 57% higher. Even people with only 'borderline' higher cholesterol had a 50% higher chance of vascular dementia. It is thought that nearly 100 million Americans have either high or borderline cholesterol.

You can find out more about this research at

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE57447520090805?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&sp=true