The “good” cholesterol that is found in olive oil and avocados has been portrayed as a good fairy lately based on its association with healthy hearts, but a new study may give people another reason to chow down on guacamole. A broad study of people in their 50s and 60s revealed that low levels of good cholesterol are linked to poor memory, which may be an early indicator of dementia and Alzheimer’s.
The results, reported in a journal [subscription required] published by the American Heart Association, showed that 60-year-olds with low levels of good cholesterol were 53 percent more likely to have memory problems. However, other researchers point out that the study did not prove causation, and said the study did not yet support larger diet trials aiming to boost levels [BBC News].
Researchers believe they understand why good cholesterol, which is more properly called high-density lipoproteins (HDL), is associated with heart heath: It doesn’t build up in arteries, but instead transports cholesterol back to the liver to be reused. But the mechanism by which it may influence memory function is still mysterious. The lead researcher in the memory study, Archarna Singh-Manoux, had only a hypothesis regarding how HDL cholesterol may protect memory. She said one possible explanation is that it wards off formation of… plaques in the brain that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s [Reuters].
While an editorial that accompanied the study argued that it didn’t provide enough evidence to support dietary interventions for dementia patients, Singh-Manoux disagreed, and said that aging baby boomers may want to act on this information: “physicians and patients should be encouraged to monitor levels of HDL cholesterol” [Telegraph], she said.
Image: flickr/advencap
July 7th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
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I didn’t agree with you first, but last paragraph makes sense for me
October 26th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
Unfortunetely, the study did not prove enough link between good cholesterol and the memory. But it’s still encouraging for people to take control of the HDL level in their body. The japenese have started long ago, with what the french call ” Alicament “, Using properties on vegetables like Avocado in search of a better health.
It’s obvious they’ve succeeded, OKINAWA is an exemple of that application and great efforts are being made actually to understand this Island’s way of living that exceeds Western societies’ health. So we all have to increase vegetables in out diet if we really want to have a better health, including memory.
December 20th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
Enable to have a healthy life there must be a level of having a colesterol.like what is written above, good colesterol will lead us to have a good memory that our gradparents should have. This cholesterol can be taken fron olive oil an example of a healthy oil that we must use in our daily routine in the kitchen.
April 29th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
I recently discovered that I have high cholesterol!!! I couldn’t believe it, because Im only 28.
October 7th, 2010 at 4:45 pm
Wow, this is good news as I eat so much guacamole, haha. Very interesting how they are linked to each other, I really think avocados are magical when it comes to your health!
May 1st, 2011 at 9:13 am
[...] [5]: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2008/07/01/good-cholesterol-linked-to-good-memory/ [6]: http://discovermagazine.com/1999/mar/stress [7]: [...]