06/10/2024: Michal Schnaider Beeri, PhD, Director of the Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center

Aging Today Podcast

For some middle-aged people, the amount of fat in the pancreas, liver, and belly is related to the brain’s volume and cognitive function, one Rutgers Health study published in the journal, Obesity, finds. The impact of abdominal fat on brain health and cognition is generally more pronounced in middle-aged men with a family history of Alzheimer’s disease, who have a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease as opposed to women, according to researchers at Rutgers Health. “In middle-aged males at high Alzheimer's disease risk—but not females—higher pancreatic fat was associated with lower cognition and brain volumes, suggesting a potential sex-specific link between distinct abdominal fat with brain health.” Dr. Michal Schnaider Beeri shares about how this research highlights the importance of investigating the interrelationships of fat deposits, brain aging, and cognition in the context of sex differences.