In addition, as stated by the research team, a new study involving a larger group of people is needed and planned, since a better understanding of how type 2 diabetes may affect blood flow to the brain is necessary.
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TIME Magazine explains that normally, blood vessels will swell with the slightest increase in blood flow to provide oxygen in areas that need it most, like the regions for memory or intellectual tasks. However, until this moment, there was no evidence that blood sugar can also affect the brain for patients who have type 2 diabetes. The researchers also looked into the relationship between the reactivity rate of the blood vessels in the brain, the parameters indicating inflammation and the cognitive abilities of the study subjects through least squares models.
Normal blood flow regulation allows the brain to redistribute blood to areas of the brain that have increased activity while performing certain tasks. The average age of participants was 66, and those with diabetes had been treated for an average of 13 years. Of those, 19 had type 2 diabetes and 21 did not. According to a new study, those with type 2 diabetes experienced negative changes in their ability to regulate blood flow in the brain, which was associated with lower scores on memory and cognition tests.
Type 2 diabetes accounts for 95 percent of diabetes cases in adults, and several studies have shown that regular physical activity and a healthy diet can prevent or delay the onset.
The researchers conducted the study by enrolling 65 participants in a 2-year prospective investigation.
The research involved 40 people with an average age of 66.
Figuring out whether such therapies can improve the brain function among people with diabetes is critical, since more people are diagnosed with the disease earlier in life, including in childhood. The volunteers completed thinking and memory tests.
On a test of learning and memory, the scores of the people with diabetes decreased by 12 percent, from 46 points to 41 points over the two years of the study, while the scores of those without diabetes stayed the same, at 55 points. After two years, the non-diabetic controls showed few signs of mental slippage. “These findings are consistent with previous studies that demonstrated that higher HbA1c levels are associated with faster cognitive decline”.
In other words, he said, it appears the inability of the blood vessels to respond to various demands is what leads to the thinking problem, although inflammation also plays a role in damaging the blood vessels.
“What’s new here is they are documenting that the changes in the blood vessel in response to circumstances is what seems to be predicting a decline in cognition”, said Gordon, who is also professor of neurology and psychiatry at Hofstra North Shore Long Island Jewish School of Medicine.
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What drove the decline, says Novak, were changes in the brains of the diabetic patients.
