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In the News: Women’s Dementia Worsens Faster Than Men’s
A Life Priority perspective on health, habits, and the choices that shape how well we keep showing up.
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The Durk Pearson & Sandy Shaw®
Life Extension NewsTM
Volume 18 No. 4 €¢ August 2015
In the News: Women’s Dementia Worsens Faster Than Men’s
So says a headline in the July 22, 2015 The Wall Street Journal. According to the study (398 subjects who participated in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative), women’s cognitive decline took place about twice as fast as men’s. The good news is that it is very likely, based on scientific studies showing that women need more choline than men do (Fischer, 2007), and that, as choline has been identified as a nutrient important to cognition (Poly, 2011) a deficiency of choline is one cause of this vulnerability to dementia in women. Not only does estrogen play an important role in the cholinergic nervous system (Fischer, 2007, Craig, 2010)—estrogen that declines rapidly following menopause—but it is known that in older people, choline is taken up less effectively into the brain (Cohen, 1995). In addition, women are much more susceptible to autoimmune diseases than men are and the cholinergic nervous system is a major antiinflammatory system (Tracey, 2007).
Themes to carry forward
Notice
Start with the pattern you can actually see
Energy, sleep, digestion, mood, movement, and recovery all leave clues. Paying attention to the pattern makes the next step more useful.
Simplify
A smaller routine is easier to keep
Choose one or two habits that fit your real week. Food quality, hydration, movement, sleep, and stress recovery usually matter before complexity.
Support
Match supplements to a specific priority
A focused supplement routine works best when it supports a clear goal and sits alongside the basics you already repeat.
Add it all up and the evidence points to a need for additional choline in older women. The amount of choline recommended by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) for non-pregnant women, 425 mg a day, is (in our judgment) too low to supply adequate amounts of choline to older women when you consider the reduced ability to transport choline into the brain, the loss of estrogen, and also the variation (dietary composition (van Wijk, 2012), choline consumption, genetic and epigenetic differences in the ability to absorb choline from the diet, get it into the brain, and then convert it to phospatidylcholine via biochemical pathways) between individuals suggests that the amount that may be adequate for much of the population per the IOM recommendation may not be adequate for YOU.
In short, choline is a major nutrient for keeping your cognitive function in good condition as you get older. We ourselves take 2 grams a day of choline in the form of choline dihydrogen citrate.
References
- Fischer, daCosta, Kwock, et al. Sex and menopausal status influence human dietary requirements for the nutrient choline. Am J Clin Nutr.85(5):1275-85 (2007).
- Poly, Massaro, Seshadri, et al. The relation of dietary choline to cognitive performance and white-matter hyperintensity in the Framingham Offspring Cohort. Am J Clin Nutr. 94:1584-91 (2011).
- Craig, Brammer, Maki, et al. The interactive effect of acute ovarian suppression and the cholinergic system on visuospatial working memory in young women.35:987-1000 (2010).
- Cohen, Renshaw, Stoll, et al. Decreased brain choline uptake in older adults. An in vivo proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study. 274(11):902-7 (1995).
- Physiology and immunology of the cholinergic antiinflammatory pathway.J Clin Invest.117(2):289-96 (2007).
- van Wijk, Watkins, Bohlke, et al. Plasma choline concentration varies with different dietary levels of vitamins B6, B12and folic acid in rats maintained on choline-adequate diets. Br J Nutr. 107:1408-12 (2012).
Practical takeaways
Ways to apply it
Add
- Color
- Protein
- Fiber
- Healthy fats
Reduce
- Stale foods
- Sugary defaults
- Impulse snacks
- Friction
Support
- Clear goal
- Meal rhythm
- Hydration
- Consistency
Life Priority, established in 1994, offers supplements that are scientifically-formulated, results-oriented, and GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) and are manufactured at USDA and FDA inspected facilities.
*The products and statements made about specific products on this web site have not been evaluated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent disease. All information provided on this web site or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for advice from your physician or other health care professional. You should not use the information on this web site for diagnosis or treatment of any health problem. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new vitamins, supplements, diet, or exercise program, before taking any medication, or if you have or suspect you might have a health problem.
*Any testimonials on this web site are based on individual results and do not constitute a guarantee that you will achieve the same results.
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