Memory Loss Linked to High-Fat Diet

Researchers from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston say they have linked memory loss to a diet high in saturated fat and cholesterol.

Collaboration between laboratories at Medical University of South Carolina and at Arizona State University led researchers to discover that rodents that were fed a diet high in cholesterol and saturated fat displayed impairment in working memory.

This memory loss is associated with inflammation in the brain, as well as the impairment of structural proteins that affect how a nerve cell functions. As inflammation is associated with a poor diet, the failure of functions in other key organs such as the eye and the ear also could be expected.

Assuming that the same phenomenon occurs in human beings, the study suggests that as humans age, memory may be preserved and brain functions improved by restricting the consumption of cholesterol and saturated fats, the researchers said.

The findings are published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.