The Medical Advisor

Diet (1) and exercise (2) are effective natural strategies to help protect your brain against neurodegenerative diseases, such as dementia. But did you know that your oral microbiome, composed of different bacterial strains living in your mouth, also plays a role in protecting your brain? Oral Bacteria — The Missing Link for Dementia? A study published in PNAS Nexus investigated how specific bacteria in the mouth influence cognitive function and dementia risk. Specifically, researchers focused on the connection between the oral microbiome, nitric oxide (NO) production and cognitive performance, particularly in individuals with the APOE4 gene, a gene associated with heightened risk of Alzheimer’s disease (more on this later). 3 • Framework of the study —  The study involved 115 participants over 50 years old from the PROTECT study, an online cohort created to track the cognitive function of older adults across the United Kingdom. 4  Saliva samples were collected from the partic...