Scientists know that diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease are highly related. Both share a common biochemistry that can be found in the body (diabetes) and the brain (Alzheimer’s disease). Therefore, it is critically important to understand how blood sugar levels that affect diabetes may also affect memory and thinking. Even if you don’t have type 2 diabetes, most people over the age of 65 experience decreased insulin sensitivity, which impairs how the body uses blood sugars. And how blood sugar is used is a critical factor in brain health in later life.
Rossmoor’s Tice Creek Fitness Center and the UC Davis Alzheimer’s disease center in the East Bay have teamed up to launch an important new research study to understand how blood sugar levels in late life change memory and thinking skills. The study will recruit 200 sedentary Rossmoor residents into the Tice Creek Fitness Center. These residents will receive diet and exercise counseling over the course of a year. At different points during the year, the study will ask the residents to make changes to their diets and exercise levels. The study will also measure how those changes affect their physical and cognitive abilities. The study hopes to gather enough data to be able to show how diet and exercise interact to protect the health and well-being of seniors.”
