There are few things that literally frighten me as much as loss of cognition. With the steadily growing epidemic of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, every single one of us must be diligent in the fight against these debilitating diseases.
Early detection is crucial! If you’re diagnosed, get a second (even a third) opinion. Make sure your case is clearly defined as Alzheimer’s rather than another form of dementia that may respond better to current therapies.
As with any disease, there are patients who are wrongly diagnosed! The earlier (and correct) your diagnosis, the more you can do to pursue treatment.
Leave no stone unturned and opt for a doctor willing to pursue all possible treatment modalities from conventional to alternative. This is your brain we’re talking about and there should be no limits to what you’ll do to preserve it.
What is Alzheimer’s Disease?
The symptoms of Alzheimer’s are difficult for the person going through them and devastating for the loved ones forced to watch the deterioration.
Worldwide, 44 million people are afflicted with Alzheimer’s or a similar dementia. It’s a disease of your brain that robs you of memories, degrades your quality of life, and gradually destroys your independence.
Approximately 5% of patients (200,000 in the United States alone) are between 35-55 years old when diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Many have a strong familial history of the disease. Genetic testing may be able to pinpoint the expression of particular genes (APP, PSEN 1, or PSEN 2) that raise your risk.
It’s your choice to get this testing done and it might be financially impossible for you.
Such obstacles are why everyone should be doing everything possible from the youngest age to prevent neurodegenerative disease (because I believe you can beat it).
Alzheimer’s is the only disease in the top ten causes of death that is considered unpreventable or incurable according to conventional scientists and health organizations. According to mainstream sources, you can’t even slow it down.
I absolutely disagree.
There is nothing I wouldn’t attempt if this disease made an appearance in my life.
10 Early Alzheimer’s Symptoms You Must Not Ignore
- Changes to memory that start disrupting daily life
- Differences in mood and/or personality
- Losing track of items or steps throughout the day
- Increasingly unable to plan or solve simple problems
- Trouble with verbal or written communication
- Difficulty completing tasks that were once familiar and easy
- Growing confusion about basic information such as time or location
- Decrease in visual or spatial concepts
- Gradually worsening judgment
- Isolation from work or social situations that steadily grows
If you recognize that you or someone you know are exhibiting the early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, you can’t delay! Being proactive before and in the earliest stages of this neurodegenerative disease is crucial.
You have to know the signs and if you see them, under no circumstances should they be ignored or attempt to be explained away. Dementia should not be an expected product of aging!
Resigning yourself to the worst case scenario isn’t the way to go! Science has linked negative thinking to a greater risk (and lower response to treatments) of the disease.
Breaking Science!
Researchers from Buck Institute for Research on Aging and the UCLA Easton Laboratories for Neurodegenerative Disease Research may have found a new path to detecting and treating Alzheimer’s. Though their study was small (only 10 patients), it’s incredibly promising.
MRI and extensive psychological testing showed measurable (and sustained) reversal of memory loss in patients with early stages of the disease. The incredible results were published in the medical journal Aging.
Their system is detailed with 36 points addressed. They cater a personalized system of treatment for each patient that includes alterations in every aspect of their lives such as diet, exercise, sleep quality (and amount), brain stimulation, vitamin supplementation, pharmaceuticals, and more.
They’re calling it metabolic enhancement. Sounds like so many things those of us in the alternative health realm use!
Professor and MD, Dale Bredesen, with Buck Institute explained, “All of these patients had either well-defined mild cognitive impairment (MCI), subjective cognitive impairment (SCI) or had been diagnosed with AD [Alzheimer’s disease] before beginning the program. Follow up testing showed some of the patients going from abnormal to normal.”
Researchers also pointed out that patients who’d been forced to leave their jobs due to cognitive impairment were able to return while others who were beginning to struggle at their jobs improved.
- One patient in particular tested in the 17th percentile range for hippocampal volume (overall cognition) at the beginning of the study. By the end of the study, he tested in the 75th
- Another participant had been suffering with increasing memory loss for 11 years. He followed the protocol for almost two years and climbed from 3rd percentile to 84th percentile (overall cognition) and has reopened his business.
- A female patient diagnosed at 49 with the early stages of cognitive decline no longer tested for it 9 months after following the program.
All the patients were genetically at risk for Alzheimer’s through the APOE4 allele that is present in 65% of AD cases. The researchers stressed that genetic testing could be crucial for some.
Bredesen said, “The old advice was to avoid testing for APOE because there was nothing that could be done about it. Now we’re recommending that people find out their genetic status as early as possible so they can go on prevention.”
For two decades, Bredesen has been working out systems to treat the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. He explained the complication with how AD affects the human brain.
“Imagine having a roof with 36 holes in it. Your drug patched one hole very well. The drug may have worked, a single ‘hole’ may have been fixed, but you still have 35 other leaks, and so the underlying process may not be affected much. We think addressing multiple targets within the molecular network may be additive, or even synergistic, and that such a combinatorial approach may enhance drug candidate performance, as well.”
If his initial results are indicative of what is possible, I hope everyone is throwing cash his direction to fund it. In the meantime, search the site and see what other suggestions I’ve reported in the past to prevent and/or slow the symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
The science proves it…we can prevent it, we can slow it, and maybe we’re close to curing this horrific disease completely.
After all, our statistics for the future otherwise are dire and I won’t go down without a fight. Neither should you.
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