This episode is dedicated to clarification of a podcast discussion between Joe Rogan and Max Lugavere, two popular influencers who have a large audience. They discussed Alzheimer’s disease and brain health in general, and some of the information that was shared was not accurate, which can be really harmful.
This is by no means an attack on Rogan or Lugavere. After listening to the conversation, we think Lugavere may not be quite familiar with the data regarding brain health, and it would be important to set the record straight and share the evidence with people and let them decide what’s best for them.
Having seen thousands of patients with dementia, whether it’s Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal lobe dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, and others, we feel it’s our responsibility to share evidence based data as opposed to feel-good, self confirming anecdotes.
Relevant references:
- Phillips, M. C et al. (2021). Randomized crossover trial of a modified ketogenic diet in Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s research & therapy, 13(1), 1-12.
- Lilamand, M et al. (2022). Efficacy and Safety of Ketone Supplementation or Ketogenic Diets for Alzheimer’s Disease: A Mini Review. Frontiers in Nutrition, 1324.
- Włodarek, D. (2021). Food for thought: the emerging role of a ketogenic diet in Alzheimer’s disease management. Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 21(7), 727-730.
- Cronjé, H et al. (2021). Ketogenic therapies in mild cognitive impairment and dementia. Current Opinion in Lipidology, 32(5), 330-332.
- Andrews, S et al., collaborators of the Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics Consortium. (2021). Causal associations between modifiable risk factors and the Alzheimer’s phenome. Annals of neurology, 89(1), 54-65.
- Olmastroni, E et al. (2022). Statin use and risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, 29(5), 804-814.
- Tan, Z. S et al. (2003). Plasma total cholesterol level as a risk factor for Alzheimer disease: the Framingham Study. Archives of Internal Medicine, 163(9), 1053-1057.
- Kivipelto, M et al. (2002). Apolipoprotein E ε4 allele, elevated midlife total cholesterol level, and high midlife systolic blood pressure are independent risk factors for late-life Alzheimer disease. Annals of internal medicine, 137(3), 149-155.
- Sáiz-Vazquez, O et al. (2020). Cholesterol and Alzheimer’s disease risk: a meta-meta-analysis. Brain sciences, 10(6), 386.
- Wingo, A. P et al. (2022). LDL cholesterol is associated with higher AD neuropathology burden independent of APOE. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 93(9), 930-938.
- Hall, K et al. (2006). Cholesterol, APOE genotype, and Alzheimer disease: an epidemiologic study of Nigerian Yoruba. Neurology, 66(2), 223-227.
- Levit, A et al. (2020). Neurovascular unit dysregulation, white matter disease, and executive dysfunction: the shared triad of vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer disease. Geroscience, 42(2), 445-465.
- Dhana, K et al. (2020). Healthy lifestyle and the risk of Alzheimer dementia: Findings from 2 longitudinal studies. Neurology, 95(4), e374-e383.
