Low blood levels of choline, crucial for liver function and controlling inflammation, could be among the various ways through which obesity can speed up cognitive decline and increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study. Studies have found that high blood pressure is a risk factor for mild cognitive impairment, which usually precedes Alzheimer's disease, in which speech and thought processes steadily decline with age. The researchers from Arizona State University said conditions such as obesity, high blood pressure and insulin resistance can strain the body's blood vessels and metabolic systems, with stress building up over time speeding up cognitive decline and one's risk of Alzheimer's disease. The study, published in the journal Aging and Disease, looked at 30 young adults -- half with obesity and half of healthy weight -- aged in their 20s and 30s.
Fasting blood samples were collected for measuring circulating choline, inflammatory cytokines, insulin and glucose levels, liver-related enzymes, other metabolic measures, and neurofilament light chain (NfL) -- a protein released when a nerve cell is damaged.
The participants were seen to have unusually low blood levels of choline, a key nutrient and organic compound crucial for liver function, inflammation control and long-term brain health.
The authors "found that obese participants showed reduced circulating choline, correlating with higher body fat, liver dysfunction markers, increased (insulin resistance), and elevated inflammatory cytokines." The NfL levels were higher in obese participants and negatively correlated with circulating choline levels, findings that the researchers said were consistent with those observed in patients with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.
The findings reveal links between obesity, low choline, insulin resistance, systemic inflammation and NfL -- key risk markers for Alzheimer's disease, the authors said.
"This research adds to the growing evidence that choline is a valuable marker of metabolic and brain dysfunction—and reinforces the importance of sufficient daily intake, as it is essential for human health," lead researcher Ramon Velazquez, from the Arizona State University's Banner Neurodegenerative Disease Research Center, said.
"Several new reports published this month further link reduced blood choline levels to behavioural changes, including anxiety and memory impairment, as well as (a) broader metabolic dysfunction," Velazquez said.
Monitoring such markers in early adulthood may be useful for assessing future Alzheimer's risk in individuals prone to obesity, the researchers said.
They added that the study's sample size was modest, and that a larger, more diverse cohort may have captured broader population trends.
The study also did not include cognitive assessments, though higher NfL levels were observed and has been associated with cognitive decline in non-demented adults in previous research, the team added.
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