| published in: Taste for Life magazine: November, 2004 |
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PROTECT AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE nutrition your brain The brain is the most energy demanding organ in the body requiring a constant supply of nutrients. Recently scientists have discovered that the brain has the ability to rewire itself throughout life. Not only does nutrition hold the key to brain health, but it also appears to play a pivotal role in cognition, memory, and various neurological disorders including
Alzheimer's disease (AD).
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ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE
An estimated 4.5 million Americans have AD, and that number is expected to hit 16 million by 2050 as baby boomers age. Scientists are scrambling to understand this condition better and to find effective treatments. Alzheimer's is characterized by neuronal degeneration and buildup of amyloid-beta formations and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. Individuals afflicted with AD, which is more common
among women, increasingly fail to remember important items and sometimes, how to perform tasks that would have been simple just six months previously.
"It's not that you misplaced your keys - it's that you can't figure out what you would do to get them back," says Richard Mohs, MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.
The change is usually strikingly apparent to others. As the disease progresses, people with AD lose the ability to speak or move easily.
Risk factors include:
Recent research finds that Alzheimer's strikes a disproportionate number of ethnic
minorities who get AD at an earlier age than Caucasians, Hispanics begin to show symptoms of Alzheimer's at an average age of 67.6 years, while whites usually display the same symptoms at 73.1 years. Studying 37,000 Alzheimer's patients, James N. Laditka, PhD, at the University of South Carolina and his colleagues found that blacks age 55 to 64 years were three times more likely to have Alzheimer's than whites.
"Minorities face disproportionate burdens of many diseases, including some that may contribute to Alzheimer's," says James S. Jackson, PhD, a member of the Alzheimer's Association Medical and Scientific Advisory Council. "We know that Latinos have high rates of vascular disease, leave school earlier, and are less likely to use medical services or have health insurance than other Americans - all factors that appear to accelerate or increase the risk of Alzheimer's," says Christopher Clark, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia. WAYS TO PREVENT ALZHEIMER'S
D. Mohs recommends exercising the brain with mental activity like reading, playing games, and taking classes as important strategies for preventing Alzheimer's, particularly as we age. Other researchers suggest engaging in aerobic exercise to improve blood flow to the brain and to keep blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes under control. Preventive strategies for Alzheimer's are most effective when started before or during the early stages of the disease. An anti-aging plan begun while you're healthy and active is the best insurance against aging conditions including AD. NUTRITIONAL SUPPORT
Alzheimer's shares a common thread with other aging disorders (including heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer) involving oxidative stress and inflammation. For example, diets high in saturated fats replace essential fats and increase inflammation, which is a contributing factor in Alzheimer's. Large epidemiological studies suggest that a heart-healthy diet - low fat, low cholesterol, high fiber, and rich in fruits and vegetables - may prevent Alzheimer's by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress. The brain's high energy output generates large numbers of free radicals that overwhelm internal antioxidant systems which naturally decline with age.
Some Alzheimer's patients also have certain abnormalities in the mitochondria (tiny cellular energy factories). The relationship between these abnormalities and oxidative damage suggests "an intimate and early association" between these features in AD. The antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables provide support for quenching free radicals, while low antioxidant levels increase the severity of the disease.
Aging only compounds nutritional problems. As we grow older, our sense of taste and smell is no longer acute - and this reduces appetite. Malnutrition and dehydration may increase confusion and stress, lessen our ability to cope, and trigger physical problems. SUPPLEMENTS FOR ALZHEIMER'S Clinical trials using dietary supplements to treat Alzheimer's have been inconsistent. Niacin seems to protect against Alzheimer's but the evidence is strongest for niacin-rich foods such as lean meat, fish, poultry, peanuts, omega-e-enriched eggs, whole grain products, beans and peas, avocados, dates, figs, and prunes Shown to reduce formation of amyloid-beta formations in the brain, Ginkgo biloba extract (Egb761) is an excellent antioxidant and important nutrients. But its effectiveness depends somewhat on the patient's neuropsychological
profile, working best to improve cognitive performance and social functioning while slowing the decline of those with verbal problems.
Several other supplements may also improve cognitive function and memory:
SENIOR MOMENTS While forgetfulness is a normal part of aging, a healthy lifestyle (stress reduction, a nutritious diet, exercise, mental stimulation, and supplementation) can influence our mental acumen as we grow older, "Even mild short falls of certain nutrients can reduce cognition - especially in older people - well before outward signs of deficiencies appear," finds Katherine Tucker, PhD, professor of nutrition at Tufts University in Boston. As a nation, we need to prioritize dietary choices, choosing foods for their nutritional benefits rather than to simply stave off hunger.§
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Copyright©, 2001 by The Zimmerman Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. |
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