HHS HealthBeat (February 15, 2012)

Activity and amyloid

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

A study indicates that people who are physically inactive and who have a higher genetic risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease may have more of a protein that’s associated with the development of Alzheimer’s.

At Washington University in St. Louis, researcher Denise Head looked at people with a form of the APOE gene, AP0E-e4, which has been linked to greater buildup of amyloid protein in the brain.

“The combination of a sedentary lifestyle and APOE-e4 status was associated with a higher level of amyloid deposition.” (7 seconds)

The study, which looked at people whose thinking ability was healthy, indicated more active people had less amyloid buildup.

The study in Archives of Neurology was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: February 15, 2012