The ketogenic diet’s property of lowering blood tau protein and lipid levels has been revealed.
A study published in the Aging Journal showed that the ketogenic diet affected reducing blood tau protein and lipid levels in mice with Alzheimer’s disease.
A research team at the University of California, Davis, noted that the number of patients with various forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, is expected to triple by 2050, and sought ways to improve cognitive behavior, motor function, and blood lipids, which are involved in the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
The research team explained that cognitive impairment is characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, and as the disease progresses, motor function decreases, and blood fatty acid and cholesterol levels, which are known to be related to Alzheimer’s pathology, need to be improved to increase healthy lifespan.
They then sought to understand the impact of consistent or intermittent ketogenic diets on Alzheimer’s disease, based on previous research results that ketogenic diets could help improve the memory of mice with Alzheimer’s disease.
The accordant ketogenic diet involved eating a ketogenic diet every morning and evening, while the intermittent ketogenic diet involved eating a control and ketogenic diet each morning and evening.
The research team explained that while a consistent ketogenic diet always has high blood ketone levels, it is difficult to maintain high compliance for a long time. In contrast, an intermittent ketogenic diet only increases blood ketone levels for part of the day, but it is relatively easy to maintain for a long time.
They conducted a consistent or intermittent ketogenic diet on Transgenic, or TgF344-AD, Alzheimer’s disease mouse models. TgF344-AD mouse models show pathological changes similar to those seen in human Alzheimer’s disease due to specific genetic mutations associated with Alzheimer’s disease.
In other words, by evaluating the effects of a ketogenic diet on a mouse model, the effects of a ketogenic diet can be extended to other species, including humans can be understood.
After six months (12 months in mouse age) of a consistent or intermittent ketogenic diet, the research team reported that while the ketogenic diet did not improve spatial learning memory or motor coordination, it did decrease blood cholesterol and tau protein levels.
The researchers predicted controlling diet in high-risk groups with a high genetic risk of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease would help delay or alleviate the onset and progression of the disease.
They also announced plans to confirm through successive research whether the ketogenic diet causes changes in various cellular actions involved in Alzheimer’s pathology and progression.
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