Basically as we get older neurons die off. Low Carb Dieters have been linked in the past to worse memory than high carbers but perhaps it is because low carb diets protect your brain, and protect the neurons from dying off and developing a whole slew of conditions:

The ketogenic diet has been in clinical use for over 80 years, primarily for the symptomatic treatment of epilepsy. A recent clinical study has raised the possibility that exposure to the ketogenic diet may confer long-lasting therapeutic benefits for patients with epilepsy. Moreover, there is evidence from uncontrolled clinical trials and studies in animal models that the ketogenic diet can provide symptomatic and disease-modifying activity in a broad range of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, and may also be protective in traumatic brain injury and stroke. These observations are supported by studies in animal models and isolated cells that show that ketone bodies, especially β-hydroxybutyrate, confer neuroprotection against diverse types of cellular injury. This review summarizes the experimental, epidemiological and clinical evidence indicating that the ketogenic diet could have beneficial effects in a broad range of brain disorders characterized by the death of neurons. Although the mechanisms are not yet well defined, it is plausible that neuroprotection results from enhanced neuronal energy reserves, which improve the ability of neurons to resist metabolic challenges, and possibly through other actions including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. As the underlying mechanisms become better understood, it will be possible to develop alternative strategies that produce similar or even improved therapeutic effects without the need for exposure to an unpalatable and unhealthy, high-fat diet.

thanks- do you have a link?

I think it's this one:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16940764

Well I gotta say that title is a stretch.

Well, another title that says the same thing is "High Carb Diet Increases Risk of Alzheimers, Parkinsons, Neurodeterioration".

I think it's a good start- the brain is 70% fat and neurons need to be protected. Look at the neurons themselves and the axons are covered with a myelin sheath that is 80% fat. Looking at all the neurodegenerative diseases (there are so many) and how the incidence has increased so dramatically over the past 40 years, I don't think it's a stretch that low fat diets have something to do with it.

Did anybody see that little thing at the end?



Unpalatable? Unhealthy? Do tell!

And they say fat is what makes food taste so good. And they say that's why we eat so much. And they say that's why we're so fat.

AAARRRRGGGGGGGGGGGG! (My brain asploded!)
Every time I see stuff like this I think of the Simpson's episode where MENSA takes over the town. The are all so smart and enlightened that Lisa, Dr. Hibbard, comic book guy and the inventor end up destroying the town.

How can smart people be so freakin' stupid??

I don't think it's a stretch. Consider how stress makes your neurons die off. High cortisol (stress hormone) levels can deteriorate the hippocampus of the brain (part that controls memory) and stress can even cause strokes. Or take seizures, which cause neurons to die off by excessive firing...

Why it is hard to fathom carbs causing neuron death by stressing the brain? I could see it causing excessive firing of the neurons.This is in fact why the ketogenic diet helps epilepsy, it keeps the brain from firing excessively which keeps neurons from dying off. You may find this interesting: http://brainfuels.com/2010/03/two-e...vs-fatty-acids/

This is in Wikipedia:-

First reported in 2003, the idea of using a form of the Atkins diet to treat epilepsy came about after parents and patients discovered that the induction phase of the Atkins diet controlled seizures. The ketogenic diet team at Johns Hopkins Hospital modified the Atkins diet by removing the aim of achieving weight loss, extending the induction phase indefinitely, and specifically encouraging fat consumption. Compared with the ketogenic diet, the modified Atkins diet (MAD) places no limit on calories or protein, and the lower overall ketogenic ratio (approximately 1:1) does not need to be consistently maintained by all meals of the day. The MAD does not begin with a fast or with a stay in hospital and requires less dietitian support than the ketogenic diet. Carbohydrates are initially limited to 10 g per day in children, 15 g per day in adults, and increased to 20–30 g per day after a month or so, depending on the effect on seizure control or tolerance of the restrictions. Like the ketogenic diet, the MAD requires vitamin and mineral supplements and children are carefully and periodically monitored at outpatient clinics.[43]
The modified Atkins diet reduces seizure frequency by more than 50% in 43% of patients who try it and by more than 90% in 27% of patients.[4] Few adverse effects have been reported, though cholesterol is increased and the diet has not been studied long term.[43] Although based on a smaller data set (126 adults and children from 11 studies over five centres), these results from 2009 compare favourably with the traditional ketogenic diet.

Perhaps I wasn't clear. You titled the post: "Low Carb Diet Prevents Alzheimers, Parkinsons, Neurodeterioration," and the post was a quote from a review of research on ketogenic diets in treatment of epilepsy. I said it was a stretch because I thought your title was meant to summarize the review, and it doesn't.

It is a diet that is often 'prescribed' to epileptics but the article findings were about how it can prevent a wide array of diseases...hence some of the content: 'ketogenic diet can provide symptomatic and disease-modifying activity in a broad range of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, and may also be protective in traumatic brain injury and stroke.'

Can... may... maybe, sometimes, on mice, in a petri dish... Yes, I read most of the review you quoted from. It's interesting, but it's a long way from X prevents Y. That's all I meant about your title. Cheers.

I can't find ANY good evidence that a low-carb diets is protective against dementia in humans.

[Just finished a 10-minute search of PubMed.]

Maybe it is, maybe not. Need more research to be done.

-Steve

You might want to look into Larry McCleary's work. He is a pediatric neurologist and wrote "The Brain Trust". He seems to be a big fan of ketogenic diets for a the ailing or aging brain.