The 3 worst drinks that increase the risk of Alzheimer’s

More than six million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, a number that is projected to double by 2060.

The increase is attributed to several factors, many of them preventable – including unhealthy diets and sedentary lifestyles.

Gastroenterologist from California Dr. Saurabh Sethi has highlighted some popular drinks that may be partly to blame, picking out three that he says increase a person’s risk of Alzheimer’s.

Diet soda

“A lot of health-conscious people drink diet soda, but it’s actually not good for the brain,” Sethi said.

He explained that while many think of diet soda as a “healthy” substitute, it’s sweetened with aspartame, which “is bad for your gut bacteria and has a strong gut-brain connection.”

Previous research has shown that artificial sweeteners, including aspartame, are toxic to gut bacteria. Scientists claim that gut bacteria affect inflammation in the body, which also affects the blood supply to the brain.

A study from the Florida State University (FSU) College of Medicine linked aspartame consumption to possible problems with memory and learning.

In the study, male rats that consumed aspartame — even at levels considered safe by the FDA — had offspring that “demonstrated deficits in spatial learning and memory.”

Previous research found that people who drank at least one artificially sweetened drink a day were 2.9 times more likely to develop dementia.

In 2024, a committee within the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a statement classifying the sweetener as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” a claim that industry experts have vehemently denied.

alcohol

In a surprise to no one, Sethi says that alcoholic beverages are bad news for the body.

Recent research has found that any amount of alcohol consumption can increase the risk of more than 60 diseases in drinkers.

“Alcohol negatively affects gut bacteria and liver health, plus it also impairs sleep, which is crucial for brain health,” Sethi said.

A 2021 Harvard Medical School study found that people who get less than five hours of sleep a night are twice as likely to develop dementia as those who get six to eight hours of sleep.

While alcohol can make people feel drowsy, it interrupts the crucial stage of deep sleep.

Slow wave sleep (SWS)—also known as deep sleep—lasts approximately 20 to 40 minutes and precedes REM sleep. Experts agree that SWS is critical for restoring and growing the body, strengthening the immune system, strengthening muscles and bones, slowing brain activity, and lowering blood pressure.

The researchers found that patients who lost just 1% of their slow-wave sleep each year were 27% more likely to develop dementia than their deep sleep counterparts.

In addition to disrupting sleep, alcohol can contribute to obesity, which is a “gateway disease” for a host of cancers and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

“Alcohol consumption can have many negative effects on the brain, especially in people over the age of 65,” Dr. Arjun Masurkar, a cognitive neurologist and dementia specialist at NYU Langone Health. “Therefore, I recommend that my patients consume a maximum of one alcoholic drink per day, preferably none.”

Sports drinks

The third in Seth’s unholy trinity of dementia drinks is sports drinks.

“These drinks are generally very high in sugar, and the lack of fiber in these drinks leads to rapid absorption of sugar, increased blood glucose and insulin levels, contributing to insulin resistance, which in turn increases the risk of Alzheimer’s.”

Diabetics tend to be at greater risk for Alzheimer’s because high blood sugar can damage blood vessels in the brain and promote inflammation. Obesity has also been linked to chronic inflammation.

Previous research has shown that too much sugar from products like sports drinks leads to a build-up of glucose in parts of the brain, which has been linked to Alzheimer’s.