High LDL Linked to Early-Onset Alzheimer's
Veterans Affairs Research Communications
JAMA Neurology • May 29, 2019
While late-onset Alzheimer's – the common form of the disease – appears to be linked to cholesterol, little research has been done on a possible connection between cholesterol levels and early-onset Alzheimer's risk.
Researchers have found a link between high levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and early-onset Alzheimer's disease. According to Dr. Thomas Wingo, lead author of the study, the results show that LDL cholesterol levels may play a causal role in the development of Alzheimer's disease (EOAD).
Specific gene variants that include APOE E4 are known to be involved, but they explain only about 10% of EOAD cases, meaning that 90% of cases are unexplained.
After testing blood samples, the researchers found that participants with elevated LDL levels were more likely to have early-onset Alzheimer's disease, compared with patients with lower cholesterol levels. This was true even after the researchers controlled for cases with the APOE mutation, meaning cholesterol could be an independent risk factor for the disease, regardless of whether the problematic APOE gene variant is present.
"Collectively, these novel findings highlight the important role of LDL-C in EOAD pathogenesis." – Wingo TS, Cutler DJ, Wingo AP, et al. JAMA Neurology. 2019 May 28.
• "Rat exposure to fluoride through water significantly increased total plasma cholesterol and LDL cholesterol." [Afolabi et al. 2013]
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• "The fluoride group showed a significant increase in...VLDL-C." [Sumida et al. 2013]
• Results showed that sodium fluoride increased low density lipoprotein-cholesterol. [Hassan & Yousef 2009]