Strict Control of Blood Sugar Has No Effect on Diabetes-related Dementia

Tight control of blood sugar does nothing to slow memory loss in patients with Type 2 diabetes. In fact, strict blood sugar control might increase the risk of death. These are the findings of a new study recently published in the journal Lancet Neurology.

Type 2 diabetes patients beyond the age of 70 are twice as likely to suffer mental impairment as people of the same age who do not have diabetes.
Previous research has shown that strict control of blood sugar can lower the risk for many diabetes-related complications, including serious medical issues with circulation, vision, and kidneys, but it was unclear whether such intense treatment could also help to slow cognitive decline until now.
Lead researcher Lenore J. Launer, of the Laboratory of Epidemiology, Demography and Biometry at the U.S. National Institute on Aging, pointed out that when her team began the study, it was assumed that intensive blood sugar control would have a positive effect on cognitive function. But, Launer said, “At the end of the day, there was no difference in cognitive function between people who received the intensive strategy versus the standard strategy.”
She acknowledged, however, that since the study didn’t include a control group of people without the disease, it’s still possible that routinely controlling blood sugar could benefit cognitive function.
For the study Launer’s team assigned 2,977 type 2 diabetes patients with a high risk for heart disease to undergo either intensive blood-sugar lowering, or continue receiving current standard treatment. All of the participants had taken part in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) trial, and ranged in age from 55 to 80 years. In addition, 614 of the participants underwent an MRI for measurement of brain volume and completed cognitive ability tests at the both the start and end of the analysis.source   health news