Impaired glucose metabolism due to reduced glycolytic flux may be intrinsic to AD pathogenesis. Abnormalities in brain glucose homeostasis may begin several years before the onset of clinical symptoms.

Aging and diabetes are two well known risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Over the past 50 years there has been an dramatic increase in life expectancy with a simultaneous increase in the prevalence of diabetes in the older population. This large number of older individuals with diabetes is problematic, given that CVD risk associated with aging and diabetes. In this review, we summarize epidemiological data relating to diabetes and CVD, with an emphasis on the aging population. We then present data on hyperglycemia as a risk factor for CVD and review the current knowledge of age-related changes in glucose metabolism. Next, we review the role of obesity in the pathogenesis of age-related glucose dysregulation, followed by a summary of the results from major randomized controlled trials that focus on cardiovascular risk reduction through glycemic control, with a special emphasis on older adults. We then conclude with our proposed model of aging, that body composition changes and insulin resistance link possible dysregulation of physiological pathways leading to obesity and diabetes—both forms of accelerated aging—and risks for CVD.