It’s called an state-of-the-science consensus report, and the consensus is staggering – and bleak.
A panel of doctors and researchers convened by the National Institutes of Health conducted a massive review of studies on Alzheimer’s and came to the conclusion that the causes are still unknown, and there is no solid scientific evidence that the disease can be prevented or even slowed in its progress. (A link to the draft report can be found on the always-useful National Institute of Aging website.)
“There are no modifiable issues or variables that are going to prevent Alzheimer’s or cognitive decline, and people should know that,” Carl Bell, MD, professor of psychiatry at the School of Public Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago and a panel member, told Emily P. Walker, reporter for MedPage Today, earlier this week. (Walker is a knowledgeable medical writer: she helped me with research as I wrote my book, “Chemobrain,” in 2008).
For its report, titled “Preventing Alzheimer’s Disease and Cognitive Decline,” the panel looked at every tantalizing lead and hobby horse issue that has currency in the larger discussion about Alzheimer’s: nutrition and diet, exercise, drinking, smoking, social networks, economic factors, environment, use of statins and cardiac health, and genetic risk factors.
As Walker notes, Alzheimer’s is the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S., and mortality from the disease has increased 47% from 2000 to 2006, as a result of a decline in death rates from other chronic diseases.
The landscape is parched, to say the least.
“There is currently no evidence considered to be of even moderate scientific quality supporting the association of any modifiable factor (nutritional supplements, herbal preparations, dietary factors, prescription or nonprescription drugs, social or economic factors, medical conditions, toxins, environmental exposures) with reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease,” the report authors said.
The report did conclude that a genetic mutation known as APOE4 (for apolipoprotein E) is strongly associated with the risk of the disease.
One factor is strongly linked to Alzheimer’s, however, but people don’t have any control over it. That is presence of the apolipoprotein E (apoE) DNA variation, which studies show is strongly associated with the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
Other often-talked-about factors were evaluated as preventives. A Mediterranean diet (high in olive oil, vegetables, fruits, grains, fish), physical activity, use of statins to reduce cholesterol, moderate alcohol consumption, more years of education – all tipped the scale slightly in terms of reducing Alzheimer’s risk. But the stress here should be on “slightly,” according to the report.
