Grains and Carbohydrates Rot the Brain: STUDY

Carbohydrates, even the 'good' kind can rot the brain and may also contribute to Alzheimer's and other types of disease, a recent study finds.

David Perlmutter, from Florida believes that even 'good carbs' such as grains - a staple part of most diets, can increase risks of dementia, depression, epilepsy and headaches. He suggests that people revert back to the way their ancestors ate - with more fats and meat and not necessarily focus on munching on wheat, carbs and sugar.

Perlmutter writes in his book entitled Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs and Sugar - Your Brain's Silent Killers: "It's in the food you eat. The origin of brain disease is in many cases predominantly dietary." He suggests that people go back to old school diet that consisted of mainly fat, making up approximately 75 percent of their diet. Carbohydrates should only consist of five percent of people's diet and protein should make up 20 percent.

"This low-fat idea that's been drummed into our heads and bellies is completely off-base and deeply responsible for most of our modern ills," Pelmutter said. "People get a brain disorder and then wonder what the magic bullet cure will be. They want to treat the symptoms rather than the underlying disease problem. In fact, diet and lifestyle play a huge role in the destiny of a person's health," he added.

One study published in the journal of Alzheimer's Disease found that elderly people make who ate a high-carb diet were three times more likely to develop mild cognitive impairment which has been linked with a higher risk of dementia. People whose diets were made up of 42 percent 'good' fats were less likely to acquire cognitive impairment. Those who ate protein-rich foods were likely to reduce risk by 21 percent.