High-Methionine Diet Associated With Increased Risk Of Alzheimer’s

December 16, 2009: 08:53 AM EST

Eating foods rich in the amino acid methionine seems to boost the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study in mice. When too much methionine – found in red meats, fish, beans, eggs, garlic, etc. – is present, it is transformed into homocysteine, associated with dementia. Over eight months, one group of mice was fed regular food and another group a high-methionine diet. At 15 months of age – the equivalent of a 70-year-old human – the mice were tested. The mice fed a methionine diet had greater homocysteine levels and 40 percent more amyloid plaque in their brains, indicating advanced Alzheimer’s.

Zhuo JM, Portugal GS, et al. , "Diet-induced hyperhomocysteinemia increases Amyloid-ß formation and deposition in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease", Current Alzheimer Research, December 16, 2009, © Bentham Science Publlishers

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High-Methionine Diet Associated With Increased Risk Of Alzheimer’s

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