Alzheimer's Researchers Find High Protein Diet Shrinks Brain

Researchers studying Alzheimer's disease found that, unexpectedly, a high protein diet apparently led to a smaller brain. (Credit: iStockphoto/Kelly Cline

ScienceDaily (Oct. 21, 2009) — One of the many reasons to pick a low-calorie, low-fat diet rich in vegetables, fruits, and fish is that a host of epidemiological studies have suggested that such a diet may delay the onset or slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Now a study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Molecular Neurodegeneration tests the effects of several diets, head-to-head, for their effects on AD pathology in a mouse model of the disease. Although the researchers were focused on triggers for brain plaque formation, they also found that, unexpectedly, a high protein diet apparently led to a smaller brain.

A research team from the US, Canada, and the UK tested four differing menus on transgenic mouse model of AD, which express a mutant form of the human amyloid precursor protein (APP). APP's role in the brain is not fully understood; however it is of great interest to AD researchers because the body uses it to generate the amyloid plaques typical of Alzheimer's. These mice were fed either

• a regular diet,
• a high fat/low carbohydrate custom diet,
• a high protein/low carb version or
• a high carbohydrate/low fat option.

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