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November 7, 2018

Alzheimer's Talk: Amyloid, ApoE4, Insulin, and More



Hey everyone,


Since it’s going to be another couple of weeks before I’ll have time to write a new in-depth post, I wanted to share another video with you. I know some of you aren’t into videos and much prefer to read, so if that’s you, just hang tight; I’ll start writing “for real” again as soon as I can. For the rest of you, though, here’s the talk I gave about Alzheimer’s disease at Low Carb Houston just two weeks ago. I had 30 minutes to give a talk that I normally give in 45-60 minutes, so I had to cut a few things out. (Also had to speak quickly!) If you want the full version, I covered a little bit more during a talk at KetoCon back in June.  

If you’re interested in Alzheimer’s disease as “type 3 diabetes” or “diabetes of the brain,” I think you’ll find these talks very educational. Even though the Low Carb Houston talk was a little shorter than the one at KetoCon, it was a bit more in-depth on the science specifically surrounding beta-amyloid. I added in some aspects that I don’t normally include, because continuing medical education credits (CMEs) were being offered for the event, so I felt like I should step things up a bit and include some of the technical details I usually leave out for an audience that’s mostly laypeople. (Turns out Houston had a big mix of everyone, so it was fine either way.) If you’re especially interested in amyloid and why I don’t think it’s a cause of Alzheimer’s and, in fact, is more likely a protective thing, you’ll want to watch the Houston talk.

The KetoCon talk includes some details on cholesterol that I skipped over in Houston due to time constraints, and also because Dr. David Diamond, Dr. Nadir Ali, Dr. Maryanne Demasi, and Dave Feldman had all spoken before I did, and they covered cholesterol and statin drugs better than I ever could have. (Good thing, because it helped that I was able to skip the cholesterol details…freed up time for looking more closely at amyloid.)

You can find more of my presentations and articles on Alzheimer’s here. I haven’t had a chance to update it in a while, but I’ll do that soon. (Need to include the Houston talk for sure!)

And don’t forget about my shiny new YouTube channel. I know many of you (me included!) prefer reading to watching videos, but for those who might enjoy watching me remind people to keep low carb and keto simple and sane, please consider checking out the channel. Topics already addressed include an intro to why I started the channel, my personal history & background with low carb, how keto works, and measuring ketones. Upcoming topics include the Keto Police™, food quality, protein (and gluconeogenesis), weight loss stalls, and thyroid function. (I see probably 2 clients a month who have unrecognized/undiagnosed hypothyroidism, and it is a major roadblock to fat loss.) If you have a specific topic you’d like me to address, feel free to suggest it in the comments.





Disclaimer: Amy Berger, MS, CNS, NTP, is not a physician and Tuit Nutrition, LLC, is not a medical practice. The information contained on this site is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any medical condition and is not to be used as a substitute for the care and guidance of a physician. Links in this post and all others may direct you to amazon.com, where I will receive a small amount of the purchase price of any items you buy through my affiliate links.

4 comments:

  1. Hi Amy,

    I have a request for a topic that I'd like your opinion on; (but preferably in a blog post, if possible?) I'm one of those people who prefers to read rather than watch....

    The topic is ferritin. There are some in the Low Carb community, as well as the Paleo community- (and some of them are doctors)- who claim that a blood ferritin level above about 50 (or 60 or 70; they all have different opinions), is unhealthy. By conventional standards, ferritin is still considered "normal" even up to 200 (for women) or 250 (for men- not sure if these numbers are 100% accurate, but it's something like that). Anyway, my ferritin is 114, which is well within the conventionally normal range, so my doctor is not worried about it; in fact, he says it's optimal. (But these anti-ferritin people claim that the medical community is as yet unaware of the so-called problems with moderate ferritin, like mine). I am exempt from donating blood, due to not just one, but several reasons, so that option is out. I eat low carb, and I like eating meat; I feel good eating this way, so I don't necessarily want to change. But there is the fear that I may have health problems down the road- (according to these "low ferritin pushers", heart disease and cancer could ensue if the ferritin level is higher than about 60). Since you've debunked many of the other mythical "problems" of meat consumption- (thanks for that, by the way)- I'd be curious to know what you think about this topic? Is it all bunk, and should I just ignore it? I have, actually, tried to lower my ferritin level (without donating blood, since I can't) but it didn't work.

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    1. Hi Lisa, thanks for the suggestion. I know almost nothing about the ferritin issue and wouldn't be able to write about it intelligently. I think Tucker Goodrich might have written about this in the past. I would search his blog and see if anything comes up. Or consider contacting him privately to see what info he can share. I'm pretty sure he's done some research on this topic: http://yelling-stop.blogspot.com/

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  2. Hi Amy, what are your thoughts on review articles commenting on the dangers of low carb diets long term (specifying that they work good short term)? I'm pretty sure you have seen a good dose of those :)

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    1. What do you *think* my thoughts are, Ed? ;-)
      I've been low carb since 2003, and I'm still hangin' around here on the planet. Maybe someone out there considers 15 years "short term" though.

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