Alzheimer's 'cause' discovered: Poisonous algae found in UK freshwater lakes and reservoirs could be fuelling dementia epidemic afflicting one million people

 

A poisonous toxin found in freshwater lakes and reservoirs across Britain could be fuelling the country’s dementia epidemic, scientists fear.

Researchers have found the first direct evidence that a chemical, produced by algae, might be linked to a range of devastating neurological conditions including Alzheimer’s and Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Pictured, blue-green algae on Lake Windermere  

 

The toxin – sometimes a by-product of increasingly common blue-green algal bloom – has been found in seafood and plants, through which it is feared it enters the food chain.

Now experts have highlighted a growing body of evidence suggesting the toxin, called BMAA, could trigger brain disease in humans.

The brains of people who have suffered from Alzheimer’s and MND have been found to contain high levels of the compound, whereas those of healthy people do not. Pictured, an artificially coloured MRI scan of the human brain