A new study from the Lifecourse Epidemiology of Adiposity and Diabetes (LEAD) Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus suggests that young people with diabetes may be at a much higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease as they age.
The study, published in the journal Endocrines, found that specific blood biomarkers associated with neurodegeneration and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) were present in young individuals who had been diagnosed with diabetes early in life. This finding indicates that youth-onset diabetes could lead to early signs of neurodegeneration.
“Preliminary evidence shows that preclinical AD neuropathology is present in young people with youth-onset diabetes,” said Allison Shapiro, PhD, MPH, the study’s lead author and assistant professor of pediatrics and endocrinology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. “These preliminary data suggest that there could be a heightened risk of early-onset AD for people diagnosed with diabetes in childhood or adolescence.”
The research looked at about 80 people, focusing on blood biomarkers and PET scans to detect evidence of neurodegenerative disease. Some of the participants had type 1 diabetes, others had type 2, and some had no diabetes at all. The individuals with youth-onset diabetes came from the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study, a multi-center population-based registry and cohort.
Besides the higher blood biomarkers of AD found in the young people with diabetes, the study also revealed increased accumulation of amyloid proteins in brain regions typically associated with AD. Shapiro said this is concerning, given the rising rates of obesity among young people in the U.S. and the younger ages at which diabetes is being diagnosed.
“We’re about to enter a different world of health care because of the obesity epidemic in young people,” Shapiro said. “We’re now seeing more aging-related diseases in younger people.”
While the study does not claim that these young individuals have AD or cognitive impairment, it does suggest that their risk trajectory is troubling. The research team hopes to obtain additional funding to continue following this group as they grow older to understand more about their risks and what drives them. This could lead to clinical insights for doctors treating people with youth-onset diabetes.
Shapiro noted that cognitive testing, which is typically recommended for older adults with diabetes, could also be beneficial for younger individuals. “The field of diabetes care is beginning to recognize the importance of cognitive testing as part of clinical follow-up,” she said. “And it should be something we consider in youth-onset diabetes as well.”
