![[picture of Nikolaos Scarmeas, M.D. ]](http://www.cumc.columbia.edu/news/pics/scarmeas_nikolaos_90.jpg) Nikolaos Scarmeas, M.D. ,
A team of Columbia researchers recently found that people who follow the Mediterranean Diet—a nutritional regimen heavy on legumes, cereals, fruits and vegetables, fish, and monounsaturated fats (such as olive oil) and light on saturated fats, meat, and dairy products—can significantly lower their risk of developing Alzheimer''s disease. Dr. Nikolaos Scarmeas, assistant professor of neurology at Columbia University Medical Center, was the lead investigator on these compelling studies, published in the June 2006 edition of the Annals of Neurology and in the December 2006 edition of the Archives of Neurology. He can provide in-depth analysis of the studies'' particulars, addressing the potential reasons for the diet''s “protective effect” and what impact this research may ultimately have on the prevention, investigation, and treatment of Alzheimer''s in the future. A well-known, well-respected clinician and clinical researcher, Dr. Scarmeas actively studies a variety of topics related to Alzheimer''s disease, including how factors that can affect cognitive reserve (i.e. education and lifestyle choices such as physical, social, and intellectual activities or dietary habits) can help people cope better with the damage caused to their brains by Alzheimer''s disease and therefore improve both their Alzheimer''s risk (Neurology 2001) and rates of progression (Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 2006). Dr. Scarmeas has also used brain imaging to uncover unique blood flow patterns in Alzheimer''s disease patients (Neurology 2004; Neuroimage 2004; Archives of Neurology 2004; Archives of Neurology 2003) and in healthy subjects with either different degrees of cognitive reserve or a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer''s (Journal of the American Medical Association, 2003; American Journal of Geriatrics Psychiatry 2004; Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry 2005; Neuroimage 2003). Dr. Scarmeas'' research affiliations at Columbia include the Department of Neurology, the Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center and the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer''s Disease and the Aging Brain. For press inquiries, please contact Elizabeth Streich (eas2125@columbia.edu or 212-305-6535) or Alex Lyda (mal2113@columbia.edu or 212-305-0820).
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