“We have to get behind the scientists and push for a dementia breakthrough. It could be that we fear dementia out of a sense of hopelessness, but there is hope, and it rests in the hands of our scientists.” —James Nesbitt

People with fewer and less-diverse gut microbes are more likely to have cognitive impairment, including dementia and Alzheimer’s. That’s according to a new study from a collaboration between Monash University of Australia and Jinan University of China.

Far from being a horrifying inevitability, this is excellent news. We can’t change our DNA or our upbringing, but we have a lot of control over our gut microbes. We just need to eat better and move a little more. Many of us have made it our life’s goal to maximize our sedentary snacking, but sadly, that is doing us no favors.

The study also found that pathogenic bacteria, including Pseudomonas, were more prevalent in people with cognitive impairment. Pseudomonas can stimulate the production of amyloids, which are known to be involved with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Amyloids are intimately involved with cognition and brain function.

Amyloids are a type of protein that are built to stack together like LEGO bricks. They are versatile components of all sorts of biological processes. Bacteria—like Pseudomonas—use amyloid proteins to........

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