Healthy Blood Sugar Levels Etymology

Over 100 million people in the U.S. are either diabetic or prediabetic, which means that they have higher than normal levels of blood sugar. Although no one knows exactly why, having diabetes doubles the risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease. Recently, researchers at Tufts University conducted a study that shed some light on the potential interaction between high levels of blood sugar and beta amyloid, the protein tangles in the brain that are characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers studied cell cultures taken from normal rats and cultures from mice with uncontrolled, chronic diabetes. They exposed both sets of  cells to beta amyloid and different levels of glucose or sugar. Study results, published in , found that glucose and beta amyloid alone did not harm the cells. However, the combination of glucose and beta amyloid was especially toxic to cells. This suggests that elevated blood levels of glucose could interact with beta amyloid in human brains, injuring bloodvessels and disrupting the flow of blood to the brain. The moral of this mouse tale: Avoid high blood sugar by getting enough exercise and eating a healthy diet that isn’t weighed down by sugary processed foods and drinks.