Blood Type v Brain Health

[Rogue]

How Your Blood Type Affects Your Brain Health
The Huffington Post |  By Carolyn Gregoire
Posted: 02/11/2015 2:33 pm

We've long known that many factors, from genetics to lifestyle choices, play a role in brain health over the course of a lifetime. And according to new research, blood type may be another, previously unconsidered factor in age-related cognitive decline.



A large-scale study conducted by researchers at the University of Vermont found those with the rare blood type AB -- which is present in less than 10 percent of the population -- to be at an unusually high risk for cognitive impairment.

The researchers analyzed longitudinal data from over 30,000 adults over the age of 45, collected as part of a national study on geographical and racial differences in stroke risk, which has been shown to be particularly high in the South, especially among African-Americans.


The research team focused on a group of 495 survey respondents who showed significant declines on at least two biannually conducted evaluations of cognitive function. This group was then compared to a group of 587 participants who remained in good cognitive health over time. They found that members of the struggling group were 82 percent more likely to have type AB blood than Type A, B or O blood type -- even after taking other factors like sex and race into account.

While the researchers haven't yet established the exact mechanisms by which blood type increases the risk of cognitive impairment, it may have something to do with the increased risk of cardiovascular events like heart disease and stroke among those with non-O blood types, which may in some way affect the brain.

“Blood type is also related to other vascular conditions like stroke, so the findings highlight the connections between vascular issues and brain health," study author Dr. Mary Cushman of the University of Vermont College of Medicine said in a statement. "More research is needed to confirm these results.”

This is not the first study to look at blood type and overall brain health: Previous research found that people with Type A blood are more prone to obsessive-compulsive disorder, while those with Type O blood may be at a higher risk of depression and anxiety, Scientific American reported.

And a large study suggested a correlation between blood type and longevity. People with type A, B and AB are at a higher risk for heart disease and shorter lifespan compared to O types. Non-O types were nine percent more likely to die over the course of the seven-year study period than O types.

The findings were published in September in the journal Neurology.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/11/blood-type-brain_n_6644816.html?utm_hp_ref=science

[Agartha]

Very interesting! I am O Positive... so according to this I am more prone to depression and anxiety but I will live longer.

[Rockhopper]

I'm A Neg which shows I have an ancestor from the Scottish Islands. Figures as my maternal Grandfather was a Shetlander. OCD eh! That would explain why I am finicky on everything I do!

Tim.

[Lenzabi]

O neg and still kicking with all the health issues I have.

[Rockhopper]

O neg and still kicking with all the health issues I have.

Weeds are hard to kill Len! 

Tim.

[Rogue]

Another O here.

[Kaere]

I can't remember what I am... one of them I suppose.

[Rogue]

Hopefully you bleed red...

[Kaere]

Haha... yes, indeed

I've just gone through a dusty box in the closet and a small piece of paper in that box tells me I'm B+

[Stirky]

I can't remember either!! No surprise there then!!!

[Rogue]

Study Uncovers Link Between Blood Type And Risk Of Cognitive Decline
The Huffington Post | By Shelley Emling
Posted: 06/05/2015

Many factors impact brain health, from genetics to sleep quality. And now a new landmark study has found that blood type also may affect cognitive function as we age.

Indeed, researchers at the University of Sheffield in England found that those with an O blood type have more gray matter in their brain, which helps ward off diseases such as Alzheimer's, than those with A, B or AB blood types.

"In all likelihood the biology of blood types influences the development of the nervous system," said Professor Annalena Venneri in a written statement. "We now have to understand how and why this occurs.”

Gray matter, largely composed of neuronal cell bodies, serves to process information in the brain. As we age, a reduction of gray matter volumes typically occurs.

Venneri and other researchers analyzed the results of 189 MRI scans from healthy volunteers. They calculated the volumes of gray matter within the brain and then looked at the differences based on blood type.

The results, published in the Brain Research Bulletin, show that individuals with an O blood type have more gray matter in the posterior proportion of the cerebellum. In comparison, those with A, B or AB blood types had less gray matter in parts of the brain including the left hippocampus, which deals with the formation of long-term memories.

But researchers said more studies are needed to figure out what other biological mechanisms may be at play.

The results from the new study mirrored 2014 research that also looked at blood type and brain function. That study, by researchers at the University of Vermont, found that those with the rare AB blood type, present in less than 10 percent of the population, have a higher than average risk of cognitive problems as they age.

So what if you don't have the O blood type? Don't panic, experts say. Other studies suggest that both meditation and a healthy diet can help grow gray matter.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/05/blood-type-cognitive-decline-study_n_7519218.html

[Agartha]

I now really love being O positive!

[Lenzabi]

O- blood type and I may be avoiding the AQlzheimer's., I may be a carrier or not of mad cow, immune to it these past 30+ years since Germany, and more gray matter eh? Now if only I could reverse that radiation damage!

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