Can Food Prevent Dementia?
By: Marilyn Bohn
Introductory comments by Royane Real
Author of: “How You Can Be Smarter - Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better and Be More Creative”
During the last couple of years I have spent a lot of time visiting my mother in the nursing home.
In the nursing home I see many elderly, frail people who spend their days sitting in wheel chairs, sleeping. I watch as their relatives come to try to talk to them, to let them know they are still loved and remembered, even if they can no longer remember themselves.
These people are victims of dementia. Their brains can no longer function enough to allow them to live independently.
Sometimes their relatives talk to me about what their loved one had been like before they were diagnosed with dementia. They tell me of vibrant, energetic, outgoing individuals who lived life fully.
Today, that vibrancy is gone. When I look at those elderly people I cannot really imagine them as they once were. Their present reality is all I see.
And because I have done so much reading and studying about how the brain works, intellectually I understand that these people are the victims of plaques and tangles caused by Alzheimer’s disease, or victims of one of the other dementias. Some have been instantly felled by strokes - blood vessel leakage or clots in the brain from which they have never recovered.
When you spend a lot of time visiting in nursing homes as I have lately, you start to imagine that all old people end up this way eventually. You start to feel as if losing your mind to dementia is inevitable.
But is it really inevitable that we will get dementia ? Is that loss of memory and brain power and identity something we all have to look forward to? Or is the loss of our minds due to dementia something that we can somehow avoid?
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The issue of finding a cure or preventative for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia is urgent. Every day more and more people are entering the senior years in which dementias become more common. Eventually many millions more people will receive a diagnosis of dementia unless a cure is discovered soon.
In the meantime, is there anything we can do to protect ourselves against getting dementia? There may be some genetic component to getting Alzheimer’s or some of the other dementias, but many causes are still being investigated.
Lifestyle factors may have a role to play.
For example, people in India have a very low rate of getting Alzheimer’s disease. Some researchers have speculated that this is because people in India eat an enormous amount of turmeric in their diets.
Turmeric is a spice that gives Indian curry that yellow color, and it is also known to act as an anti-inflammatory compound in the body. Perhaps this food ingredient truly does have a role to play in helping us avoid Alzheimer’s.
Researcher David Snowdon did a long term study of a group of nuns in the United States to analyze how their lifestyles affected their brain power in later years. He concluded that in many cases, those nuns that had a diet high in antioxidants seemed better able to hold on to their mental faculties.
The following article about dementia by Marilyn Bohn gives us food for thought. You can learn more in her article about the relationship between various foods and long term brain health.
( The introduction above was written by Royane Real who is the author of the book “How You Can Be Smarter - Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better and Be More Creative” Download it today and learn more ways to get the maximum use of your brainpower and learn how to keep your brain healthy. It’s available at http://www.lulu.com/real )
Feature article:
Can Food Prevent Dementia?
By: Marilyn Bohn
My aunt who was a wonderful loving, kind woman who had dementia the last seven years of her life. It was sad to see how it affected her life.
The first I became aware of it was when a neighbor called me (I lived an hour away) and told me my aunt had answered her front door wearing only her underwear. This was not normal behavior for a 87 year old woman. I immediately took steps for her to have a full time care giver so she could remain in her own home.
Dementia is defined as the loss of intellectual faculties, including memory, which interrupts social and occupational functioning. It may be caused by vascular problems, which curtail blood flow to the brain or it could be caused from brain trauma or injury. The injury could have occurred several years prior to the loss of memory.
According to Optimal Health University which is published by www.thewellgroup.com ; "Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the best know type of dementia; it involves the disruption of normal brain cell function. Two hallmarks of AD are abnormal amounts of protein plaques and tangles within the brain. These usually affect brain regions responsible for learning and memory first."
"The good news is that a large amount of research shows that certain dietary factors can determine whether the brain stays healthy in old age—or not," according to J Nutri Health Aging 2006;10:386.
The doctor's at Integrated Wellness in Bountiful , Utah teach their patients that the Mediterranean diet is linked with a vast array of health advantages, including warding off dementia. This diet has an optimal ratio of lean protein (particularly from fish), legumes, fruits, vegetables and monounsaturated fat, mostly in the form of olive oil.
Researchers studying this diet found a reduced risk of AD. The diet also slowed the progression of the disease in people who had already been diagnosed with AD.
As people grow older for some their food choices often become limited. This can negatively skew nutritional intake. One study by the Am Diet Association suggests widening the variety of foods available to older adults in order to prevent health complications of all types.
The study also found that eating foods that are easily converted to energy, along with protein, increases the ingestion of vitamins D, B2, B6 and a host of other important B vitamins. B vitamin is associated with cognitive function. Foods rich in the B vitamin are salmon, beef, eggs, peanuts, broccoli, asparagus, red peppers, spinach and romaine lettuce.
Another interesting study done as part of the landmark Physician's Health Study, researchers at Harvard University examined different aspects of health for 4,000 people over a period of about 18 years.
The study showed that people 65 and older who had taken beta-carotene for the entire length of the 18 year study scored significantly higher in tests for general cognition and verbal memory than those who received the placebo.
A new French study looked at more than 8,000 older people and found that those who ate fish weekly reduced their risk of AD by as much as 35 percent. The study also found that the risk of developing dementia is raised by 50 percent if you don't eat fish or take fish oil. 1 gram of a fish oil supplement is associated with a 50 percent reduction in dementia.
Due to water pollution, many fish contain high levels of toxins and heavy metals, such as mercury and PCB's which affect brain health. It is recommended to avoid swordfish, tilefish, shark, snapper and king mackerel as these all are known to have high levels of mercury. Larger, longer-lived species are most susceptible to contamination.
Other studies suggest eating garlic for cognitive health, specifically aged garlic extract as this actually stopped deterioration in the brain's hippocampus, which plays a key role in memory function. Also apples that are rich in antioxidants and can prevent decline in cognitive performance related to aging and dietary deficiencies.
There has been a lot of research done that shows certain dietary factors can determine whether the brain stays healthy in old age or not. I have only touched on some of the studies that have been done relating to what we eat and how this is related to dementia.
Marilyn is a creative organizer who helps women, seniors and their families create space and end clutter in their homes and offices by setting up custom made systems. Marilyn invites you to visit her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find solutions to your organizing needs. She offers free tips in her blogs, articles and videos for your home and office organizing solutions.
About the Author:
Marilyn is a creative organizer who helps women, seniors & their families to create space and end clutter in homes and offices by setting up custom made systems. Visit her website http://www.marilynbohn.com for free organizing tips.
Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com
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