Microglial Activation Drives Neuroinflammation and Cognitive Decline

Microglial cells are the brain's immune cells, and their state—protective or destructive—determines long-term brain health.

Ultra-processed food can trigger neuroinflammation by shifting microglial cells into a harmful state.

All major neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, share a dysfunction in the brain's immune cells, the microglia.

Microglial cells constantly survey the brain, pruning synapses, clearing debris, and responding to threats.

Chronic inflammation is a persistent, low-grade immune response that damages tissues over time, unlike acute inflammation which is a normal healing process.

Perlmutter explains that chronic activation of microglial cells in the brain leads to ongoing inflammation that damages neurons and underlies Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Dr. Devi highlights the emerging evidence that neuroinflammation, driven in part by viral infections, plays a significant role in Alzheimer's disease progression.

Perlmutter describes how microglia, the brain's immune cells, can shift between a protective, anti-inflammatory state and a damaging, pro-inflammatory one—and that daily habits decide which path they take.

Perlmutter highlights that microglia, the brain's immune cells, can shift into a destructive state under conditions of metabolic stress, driving Alzheimer's pathology.