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Woman using diabetes test kit
According to a recent study, patients who suffer from type 2 diabetes are less likely to develop a neurodegenerative disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.
ALS, a neurodegenerative disease also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is known to destroy the nerve cells in the spinal and brain cord.
The medical experts know very little about what causes this rare disease and so far there are no official treatments for it.
Because of the lack of treatment, more than half of the individuals who suffer from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis die within 3 years after being diagnosed with the condition.
According to researchers, the connection between type 2 diabetes and ALS has only been studied in the last 6 months but could lead to very important findings.
However, although the association between the two conditions has been tested a few times, no one really knows for certain why the connection between them exists.
The scientists found that other medical conditions, such as being overweight or obese, or a high level of cholesterol, can also lower the risk of developing ALS.
Because of this, scientists are not sure whether the connection between type 2 diabetes and ALS is linked to the conditions mentioned above or is something different altogether.
According to the experts, no matter what they will find, the new study could provide important information on what causes the ALS and in the future a treatment for this condition will be developed.
The scientists detailed their findings in the journal JAMA Neurology.
For the new study, the researchers collected data from more than 3,600 people who had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis between 1982 and 2009.
The average age of the individuals involved in the study was 65.
The researchers compared the data from the ALS patients to that collected from 365,000 healthy individuals.
Also, the scientists identified approximately 9,294 people who had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
It later turned out that 55 of them also suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
The average age of those who suffered from diabetes was 60 and researchers found that a diagnosis at an advanced age was associated with a reduced risk of developing ALS.
However, the researchers said that although the study suggests a connection between the two conditions, it doesn’t necessarily mean that type 2 diabetes by itself can lower the risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Image Source: huffpost
