I would love to eat fish everyday because that can prevent alzheimer, but the downside is the mercury in them...I would like to eat eggs everyday too, but the downside of them is too much cholesterol.
So, there are not a lot of foods now a days that can reverse alzheimer's disease, only a few foods can do it like fish, eggs, and spinach but you have to eat those everyday to get benefits.
I'm trying to think of other ways to prevent it and I really do worry that I will get alzheimer's when I'm old, I don't want to end up like my grandpa and my dad...I'm taking care of him right now, and he doesn't even know my name anymore.
This is real scary, and it's a growing problem...how come in the 1800's and before that it was virtually unknown problem? How old is your father? Does he have early onset Alzheimers?
Early onset is slightly different than traditional Alzheimers as it is marked by a rapid regression and does appear to be genetically linked. Much more so than regular AD, that is. So good for you trying to take preventative action. I could go much deeper into the biology as this is something we've looked at in some depth in my gerontology class, if you wish.
Anyway, there have been a lot of interesting studies done demonstrating the effectiveness of various foods, drugs etc in the battle against AD. Some of the more interesting ones suggest that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen (small doses... 200 mg daily kind of thing). Indeed the omega 3 fatty acids have also proven to be effective (fish etc). Others suggest that antioxidants, folates & folic acid (the spinach you mentioned as well as other leafy greens, cereals and more) can be helpful. Additionally a low cholesterol diet is recommended (not too low though... cholesterol isn't all bad!).
All in all the best prevention is just maintaining a healthy diet and getting regular exercise. The following link also provides some good sound advice including mental activities and ways you can avoid jarring your brain too much!
http://www.helpguide.org/elder/alzheimer...
Hope this helps! You could take a cod liver oil supplement. Have you heard of Dr. Oz who comes on Oprah alot? Look him up. You can find some of the episodes with him on Oprah. I think he did a segment on Alzheimer's. I used to tell my husband things like "Dr. Oz says". and he would make fun of me, but one day he saw him on Oprah and now my husband is a fan of Dr. Oz. Try checking out this website: http://www.alzheimersprevention.org/intr...
Oh, and Alzheimer's wasn't well known because not many people lived long enough to develop the disease. Now, because of developments in medicine, people are living longer than ever before. So, there are more people who live long enough to get Alzheimer's. Alzheimers is not a normal part of aging.
Heavy metals are linking to Alzheimers, just like they are linking to Autism and just like Autism, it can be prevented and reversed. It's just a matter of how bad you want your dad back and how bad you want to avoid becoming like him.
In last year's Alzheimer's Facts and Figures Report, the number of Americans stricken with the disease was 5.1 million. This year's report brings us up to 5.2 million, including some 200,000 to 250,000 people under the age 65 who are inexplicably stricken with so-called "early-onset Alzheimer's."
By 2050, the report estimates that a full 10 million U.S. "baby
boomers" will have come down with Alzheimer's, which translates to 1 out of 8!
The strain this will place on the already faltering U.S. federal
Medicare program boggles the mind, as most people with Alzheimer's are eligible for Medicare. More than three times as much money is spent on people with Alzheimer's and other dementias than the average Medicare recipient.
Currently, Medicare spends over $148 billion per year on Alzheimer's patient care. A mere two years from now, that number is expected to reach $160 billion annually.
Alzheimer's is just as much a threat to the future of American adults as the rampant rise in autism is to our children. Clearly something is wrong, but what? Because Alzheimer's is not a normal part of aging, any more than autism is a "stage" that children commonly go through.
What is Alzheimer's?
Alzheimer's disease is a chronic form of dementia that results in severe memory loss and eventually death. The average lifespan of someone with Alzheimer's is about eight years, although many can survive up to 20 years with proper care.
It's not entirely clear what causes Alzheimer's disease, but it (as well as autism) are related to thyroid hormone dysfunction, intracellular T3 (immune system cells) deficiency, and diabetes.
One type of Alzheimer's, called frontotemporal dementia, is
characterized by cellular damage in the front and side regions of your brain. Researchers still have no idea what causes it鈥攐nly that excess production of a tiny protein fragment called beta-amyloid starts jamming the signals between your brain synapses, blocking information flow, leading to a cascade of damaging events that end in cell death.
Risk Factors for Alzheimer's Disease
The risk factors for AD include genetic, environmental and dietary factors. Certain diseases also heighten your risk. People with diabetes, for example, have up to 65 percent higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.
The primary genetic risk factor is the presence of the Apo lipoprotein E epsilon4 (APOE e4) allele, which is more common among Africans, Inuits, Amerindians, Northern Europeans than southern Europeans.
Primary dietary risk factors include trans-fatty acids that are found in so many processed foods (labeled as partially-hydrogenated vegetable oils). One prospective study also found that elevated homocysteine levels were associated with an increased risk for Alzheimer's. Homocysteine levels are elevated when you are deficient
in vitamin B6, folate, and vitamin B12.
Primary environmental factors include: smoking, obesity, and exposure to fluoride, aluminum and mercury.
How to Prevent Alzheimer's
Fortunately, there are ways to reduce your chances of getting
Alzheimer's. These simple lifestyle changes can help keep your brain in optimal working order well past your 60's.
* Eat a nutritious diet with plenty of vegetables based on your
nutritional type, and pay special attention to avoiding sugar
* Eat plenty of high-quality omega-3 krill oil or fish oil. Avoid
most fish (high in omega-3, but often contaminated with mercury)
* Avoid and remove mercury from your body. Dental amalgam fillings are one of the major sources of mercury, however you should be healthy prior to having them removed. Once you have adjusted to following the diet described in my Total Health Program, you can follow the mercury
detox protocol and then find a biological dentist to have your
amalgams removed.
Be careful as you could be jumping from the frying pan into the fire like I did if you see a conventional dentist to do the exchange. ONLY see a high quality biologically trained dentist or your health could get ruined.
* Avoid aluminum, such as in antiperspirants, cookware, etc.
* Exercise for three to five hours per week. According to one
study, the odds of developing Alzheimer's were nearly quadrupled in people who were less active during their leisure time, between the ages of 20 and 60, compared with their peers.
* Avoid flu vaccinations as they contain both mercury and aluminum!
* Wild blueberries, which have high anthocyanin and antioxidant content are known to guard against Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases.
* Challenge your mind daily. Mental stimulation, such as
traveling, learning to play an instrument or doing crossword puzzles, is associated with a decreased risk of Alzheimer's. Researchers suspect that mental challenge helps to build up your brain, making it less susceptible to the lesions associated with Alzheimer's disease. You're gonna laugh and think I'm crazy, but you could start smoking marijuana. Believe it or not, THC (one active compound in marijuana) is a neuroprotectant, meaning that it protects brain cells and prevents buildup of plaque (which is the cause of alzheimers, I believe). I've read several medical journal articles on clinical research trials dealing with this topic, that back this claim. I even remember one saying that THC works better than the best perscription medication used in the treatment of alzheimers. If you don't believe me, just google it.
It wasn't a problem in the 1800's because the majority of people didn't live long enough to experience the onset of alzheimers. That and people's diets are much worse today. Look at all the pesticides and preservatives that are in food, some of which that are known carcinogens. Then you have trans-fats and all the pollution that is released into the environment from automobiles, industries, and energy production. People don't like to believe it, but it all adds up and causes problems. |
