High-Salt Diets Can Trigger Major Brain Change Linked to Dementia

A Weill Cornell Medicine study in Nature found a salt-heavy diet can induce brain changes that could lead to reduced cognitive performance and the development of dementia over time, reports SlashGear . This finding concerns nitric oxide, which has a key role in maintaining the health of the brain's vascular system. The compound dilates blood vessels to improve blood flow and lower blood pressure, but foods high in salt may cause a decrease in the amount of nitric oxide, which may trigger the tau protein in the brain to start accumulating. Tau buildup has been associated with cognitive deterioration and the development of Alzheimer's. Mice fed a high-salt diet exhibited tau accumulation that caused dementia, rather than a lack of blood flow in the brain stemming from lowered nitric oxide. Still, the drop in nitric oxide due to large amounts of salt triggered tau instability, leading to the accrual.