In the past, we all thought that there were only two main types of diabetes, namely Type 1 Diabetes and Type 2 Diabetes. However, in recent years, some scholars have proposed Type 3 Diabetes. And it is closely related to Alzheimer’s disease. It is even called “diabetes of the brain.” What is the connection between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease, and how can it be improved? The following will introduce you to type 3 diabetes.

What is type 3 diabetes?

In the past, scientists believed that only the pancreas secreted insulin, and the central nervous system would not be affected by it. However, until the 1980s, research discovered that our brains actually have insulin receptors (Insulin receptors), so some nervous system functions are indeed affected. Insulin regulation. Since then, scientists have discovered the importance of insulin to learning and memory.

Suzanne, a neuropathologist at Brown University in the United States. Suzanne de la Monte and her colleagues compared healthy people with Alzheimer’s disease patients and found that the average level of insulin in the brains of healthy people was four times higher, and the insulin receptor (Insulin receptor) was also 10 times higher. times. Insulin receptors are target cells that act through insulin. If the protein on the cell membrane has more insulin receptors, the sensitivity to insulin and the effect of lowering blood sugar will increase.

Suzanne. De Lamont and Professor Jack Wands therefore proposed in 2008 that Alzheimer’s disease could be called type 3 diabetes. Insulin resistance in the brain has been confirmed to be one of the characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease, but no major health organization has yet officially included Alzheimer’s disease as a type of diabetes.

Type 3 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease

Current research has confirmed that patients with diabetes, especially those with type 2 diabetes, are at a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than the general population. According to research, when blood sugar is too high, it will cause lesions in brain nerves and cerebral vascular endothelial cells, leading to an increase in β-amyloid protein in the patient’s brain, the formation of plaques and deposition, which will gradually damage the brain and lead to severe cognitive decline.

Because glucose and its breakdown products destroy proteins in cells through a reaction called glycation, researchers used sophisticated testing methods to examine brain samples from patients with and without Alzheimer’s disease and found that In the early stages of glycation in Alzheimer’s disease, there is an enzyme called macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), which can play a role in the immune response and the regulation of insulin.

Research has found that MIF is linked to the activity of a type of brain cell called glia, and the accumulation of abnormal proteins in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Among them, MIF can help prevent abnormal protein accumulation in the brain, but glycation will reduce the activity and inhibitory function of MIF. Therefore, high blood sugar in diabetics becomes the key to Alzheimer’s disease. And as the disease progresses, the glycation of these enzymes will increase. The research was later published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Type 3 Diabetes Risks and Prevention

Numerous studies have pointed to a link between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease, especially those with type 2 diabetes, who are at higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease or other types of dementia later in life. However, no studies have confirmed that controlling blood sugar can help prevent cognitive decline. However, this does not mean that diabetics do not need to control blood sugar to avoid other diabetic complications, such as diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetes is considered a risk factor for vascular dementia because high blood sugar in diabetics damages vascular endothelial cells, causing reduced or blocked cerebral blood flow and causing brain damage. Some researchers believe that having either diabetes or dementia can exacerbate the damage caused by the other disease.

Diabetes may also increase the risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which may occur before or at the same time as Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. Humanoids often face more cognitive and memory problems than normal aging humans. Studies indicate that diabetes may increase the risk of mild cognitive impairment worsening into dementia.

Although diabetes will increase the chance of type 3 diabetes, exercise and diet can help control blood sugar, thereby inhibiting the risk of diabetes worsening and damaging other organs:

1. Eat healthy, natural foods: fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and low-fat milk and cheese.
   
2. If you are overweight, please lose weight: Studies have shown that losing weight can reduce the risk of diabetes. If you have obesity, please adopt a healthy diet and exercise to lose weight.
   
3. Exercise more: Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day.
   
4. Check for wounds: Check the body every day for unhealed wounds, especially wounds on the feet, which are difficult to detect and can easily increase the chance of bacterial infection.
   
5. Quit smoking.
   
6. Take prescribed medications as directed.

Don’t underestimate the above methods. According to clinical studies, it was found that subjects with blood sugar levels slightly higher than normal (pre-diabetes) exercise 5 days a week for 30 minutes each time. In the long run, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes is reduced. More than 50%, while also losing 5~7% of body weight.

Diagnosis and treatment of type 3 diabetes

There is currently no specific test for type 3 diabetes, but the way to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease is usually through a neurological examination, disease history, neurophysiological testing, etc. If a patient finds that he or she has memory loss, difficulty speaking or writing, or a loss of sense of time or space, or other symptoms suspected of Alzheimer’s disease, please seek medical attention as soon as possible and ask a physician for professional examination and relevant treatment as soon as possible.
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