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HDL Cholesterol associated with Reduced Risk of Alzheimer's

The Los Angeles Times (12/13, Kaplan) "Booster Shots" blog reported that, according to a study published Dec. 14 in the Archives of Neurology, HDL cholesterol may reduce the "risk of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life." In a study of 1,130 senior citizens, researchers found that, "compared to those with the lowest levels of high-density lipoprotein...volunteers with the highest levels were 60% less likely to be told they had a probable or possible case of Alzheimer's."

"For the study, participants were divided into four groups," Bloomberg News (12/14, Ostrow) reports. "Those in the highest group had HDL levels of more than 55 milligrams per deciliter of blood, while those in the lowest group had levels of 38 or less." Notably, "over the course of the study, 101 people developed Alzheimer's. Of those, 16 were in the highest HDL group and 32 were in the lowest HDL group." What's more, the investigators "found that those with the highest HDL were 20 percent less likely to develop the disease compared with those in the middle two groups."

HealthDay (12/13, Holohan) reported that "people can cut their risk" for Alzheimer's "by reducing their intake of trans-fats and increasing monounsaturated fats that keep 'good' cholesterol high and 'bad' cholesterol low," the study's lead author said. HealthDay also noted, "The US National Institutes of Health reports that about five percent of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 have late-onset Alzheimer's disease, the more common form of the disorder, and the prevalence increases with age."

SOURCE: The Los Angeles Times