Atherosclerosis Of The Brain And Its Role Alzheimer’s Disease

In 1901 a 51-year-old woman was taken to an insane asylum in Frankfurt Germany where she was treated by Dr. Alzheimer and was the patient that the term Alzheimer’s disease was made for.

When she died an autopsy of her brain revealed plaques and tangles that would be used to characterize the disease. The focus of the disease was placed on the plaque and tangles, but there was another important variable that was associated with the disease that was overlooked.

Alzheimer noted there was atherosclerosis are hardening of the arteries in her brain. Atherosclerosis is usually thought about in the heart body can occur throughout the whole body.

There is now a substantial amount of evidence that links Alzheimer’s disease and dementia to atherosclerotic vascular disease. As the heart goes bad due to the hardening of arteries, so does the brain go.

With atherosclerosis cholesterol and fat builds up in the arteries of the brain and reduces blood flow to the brain. This can cause mini strokes, brain shrinkage, and other conditions which all play a major role in issuing in Alzheimer’s disease.

There is now a push to have Alzheimer’s disease classified as a vascular disorder. This would be a positive move because atherosclerosis can be reserved through a change to a whole food plant-based diet or one close to it.