Alzheimers and Lifestyle Modification

After wading into the most current research regarding Alzheimers, it has become obvious that the way to age well has many facets.  I started with participating in the webinar “Awakening From Alzheimers” in the fall of 2017.  This lead to my reading “The End of Alzheimers” by Dr. Dale Bredesen, written in 2017.  He equated Alzheimers to having a roof with 36 holes in the roof.  IF an Alzheimers drug is developed and happens to help, it may plug one hole, but you will still lose the house.

Drs. Dean and Ayesha Sherzai have been working in Loma Linda, the only Blue Zone in the United States, to further understand what impacts how we age.  I read their book “The Alzheimers Solution”, written in 2017 and met Sherzai’s at the “Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease and Alzheimer’s Disease for Women” conference in Cleveland, Ohio in March of 2019.  All the evidence points to a widely varying list of lifestyle aspects.

• Remove sugar from the diet, which often causes inflammation which impacts sleep quality. When inflammation is high, joint pain can make people become more sedentary and isolated.
• Remove animal-derived foodstuffs from the diet…this has many benefits including removing cholesterol, adding fiber which helps with indigestion and constipation. Removing dairy often helps lower mucus secretion, so congestion can be reduced and has even been known to cure toe fungus!
• Oils that serve to jam the insulin lock should be eliminated, as blood sugar levels elevate when insulin can not move the glucose from the bloodstream to the cells. This also protects the endothelial cells lining our circulatory system to keep plaques from forming and even reverses heart disease progression.
• Increase physical activity, which elevates body metabolisms, increases blood flow to the brain and halts diseases that come from a sedentary lifestyle. Exercise can be more effective for many people than drugs to treat depression, PMS, Post-Partum Depression and anxiety.  Movement daily is so good for people at any age, but especially as we age.
• Sleep hygiene is VERY important, as sleep enables the brain to cleanse itself, organize information, and repair damage. A good night’s sleep is key to lifting brain fog and combating dementia.
• Social engagement works to keep our brains making new connections and adding to the redundancy that serves us well as we age.
• Stress Management and spiritual life are key to aging well and dovetails nicely with social engagement and community.

 

A building body of research and information points to many lifestyle facets as being the way to age with our wits about us.  Whether one grasps Bredesen’s ReCODE or embraces Sherzai’s NEURO protocol, they overlap in these key areas and all deserve our attention.  As food is information as well as medicine, it is foundational to giving our bodies excellent fuel.  And even if someone has abused their body for decades, it is stunning how quickly it can pivot and heal when given good fuel, rest, fun, and love.