Preventing Dementia

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Lately it seems that more and more supposed “prevention cures” are being discovered to help stem the onset of dementia. I look at these with a cautious optimism, mostly because my mom did in fact do alot of what is suggested. She ate fish almost everyday, she drank coffee, took vitamins, yet it still did not stop her from developing Alzheimers. Nevertheless, it is always good to remain hopeful that one day we will find a cure to this devastating disease.

CNN just published an article on 5 ways to keep Alzheimer’s Away

1. Antioxidants: Vitamins A, C, E to prevent cell damage.
   Two studies conducted by researchers in Rotterdam, Netherlands and Chicago, Illinois tracked the progress of subjects who took supplements as well as food containing the beneficial vitamins. After a few years of follow-up they were able to determine that those who consumed larger quantities of these vitamins were at less risk than others of developing the disease.
   Examples of foods containing Vitamin C are: Citrus fruits, Kiwi, Sprouts, broccoli, and cabbage.

   While Vitamin E enriched foods are: Grains, Nuts, Milk, and Egg Yolk.

2. Fish Oil Supplements: Anti-inflammatory properties due to omega-3 Fatty Acid which also cuts down on harmful brain plaques that mark the disease.
3. Curry: A recent study done in Singapore suggested that those who ate foods with curry had better memory scores. Curry’s chemical called bisdemethoxycurcumin helped rid the blood of a key ingredient linked to the build up of plaque.
4. Brain Cross-Training: Doing various complex tasks strengthens the memory: such as adding numbers in your head and doing crossword puzzles.
5. Phosphatidylserine supplements: These are lipids naturally found in the body. They apparently help improve cognitive abilities. There is much debate about this still and it seems to only affect those with the least severe symptoms. Since it is a supplement, the FDA does not required to prove its risks or benefits. Therefore, it is best to seek the advice of a physician before taking this supplement.

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Tags: alzheimers help, Conditions and Diseases, dementia, treatment for alzheimers

This entry was posted on Monday, November 24th, 2008 at 6:15 am and is filed under Brain Disease, Caregiving. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.