Prevention and Slowing of Alzheimer’s

Can Alzheimer’s disease be prevented or slowed in its development? The answer is YES! Does this means 100% of the time? The answer is NO. Are there practical, effective, cost efficient steps that we can all take today? The answer is YES! 

In the January 2004 issue of Archives of Neurology, a study of 5,000 people, aged 65 and older, showed that “a combination of vitamin E and vitamin C reduced the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease by about 64%”. There was no benefit from the use of vitamin C or E alone.

This study not only highlights the effectiveness of larger but safe levels of antioxidants, but also the fact that searching for a single, “magic bullet” for prevention ignores the most basic principles of biology. This, however, has no bearing on pharmaceutical research now underway to address symptom reduction via potent drugs.

The overwhelming body of scientific research to-date clearly shows that the human body has incredible abilities to fight disease, if only the body’s autoimmune system is supplied with the complete set of nutrients it requires. There can be no (zero) weak links in the defense system!

Alzheimer’s is in a category of about 70 chronic degenerative diseases and is proven to be related (in some way) to “free radical” formation and nutrition. Although there is an extensive body of scientific evidence available at the cellular science level, there is still some uncertainty about the exact mechanisms involved.

Nevertheless, even the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently reversed a long-standing anti-vitamin stance, publishing two scientific review articles recommending multivitamin supplements for all adults.

More specifically they state, “Recent evidence has shown that suboptimal levels of vitamins, even well above those causing deficiency syndrome (e.g. scurvy) are associated with increased risk of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.” They counsel that, “It appears prudent for all adults to take vitamin supplements”.

According to the Alzheimer’s Disease Education & Referral Center (A Service of the National Institute on Aging), “High Homocysteine Levels May Double Risk of Dementia, Alzheimer’s Disease. The February 14, 2002 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine provides some of the most powerful evidence yet of an association between high plasma homocysteine and later, significant memory loss.”

“The relationship between Alzheimer’s disease and the amino acid homocysteine is of particular interest because blood levels of homocysteine can be reduced, for example, by increasing intake of folic acid (or folate) and vitamins B6 and B12.”

This is of even further interest because elevated homocysteine levels are also strongly related to risk of osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, birth defects, diabetes, and a growing list of other diseases.

While this manuscript is not intended to provide a thorough and scholarly review of all the studies available, the Alzheimer’s Association and the National Institute on Aging provide summaries of numerous studies on their web sites. Therefore, we will simply list some of the additional findings of significance shown on their websites.

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