Today is Alzheimer’s Prevention Day. I’ve decided to talk about this disease and share what I’ve learned through personal experience, teachings from my mentor, Dr Cabral, and other sources. I’m dedicating this newsletter to my oldest brother, Ron, who I lost in 2020 to Covid, but who also had an underlying condition of late stage Alzheimer’s.
My brother, the original Beiber
My brother was always considered “the smart one” when I was growing up. He was the second of four, and the first boy. We had an age gap of about 10 years which made him more like a role model/protector, rather than a competitor for attention, so we were always close. I remember him helping me with everything from homework to getting over some difficult times in my tween years. He was the first to go to college in my family and the reason I ended up going at all. He toured me around campuses and helped me select my school of choice in Boston, which is the city he also went to college. Throughout those years, he’d invite me over for dinners, helped me move in and out of the dorm and into an apartment, and continued to be there for me as life went on. When I lived overseas for 7 years, he would sometimes be the one to pick me up, or drop me off on return visits. When I moved back to the US we would see each other regularly and I often stayed with his family in CT. He was always generous and gave me starter furniture and kitchenware for my apartments in Boston and NYC, and helped do home repairs when I bought my apartment. During all these life changes my big brother was there for me, ushering me along my path.
Thinking back, he was often forgetful, and made jokes about “gettin’ old” or having “old timer’s”. He would’ve been about 40 when these comments were made. Having always been skinny and active, he was overweight then, smoked cigars, liked to have beer after work and maybe drink a little too much on the weekends. He told me he was depressed. He was unfulfilled in his work, and in other areas of his life. I would give some advice during these chats but I didn’t get the sense he had the energy, or drive, to take any actions. He seemed to not be very good at finishing projects, or getting things done.
Time went on and one day he called to tell me he’d been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. I vividly remember that call, where I was standing, and crying on the phone with him. He was in his early 50s. We were devastated and didn’t really know what it meant for him or what to do. How long did he have to still remember everything? My nephew was in his early teens, what did that mean for him to grow up while slowly losing his dad? What could be done to change it?
Dementia and Alzheimer’s, like all diseases, are hard on the individuals but it arguable that it's even harder on those who love them. The truth is, you don’t lose the person when they die, but you slowly start to lose them over time, until they’re no longer the person you used to know. Our conversations became less interesting. He stopped asking questions, so conversations became more of a monologue than dialogue. While he would light up when we would first see each other, over the course of our visit his expression would become dull and he would slowly start to recede into his thoughts, or so it seemed. When there was a lull in the conversation, he might repetitively ask “So what else is going on?”, or just simply laugh. I also noticed his personality changing in a way where once he was my very chill and laid back brother, now he was less tolerant of others, and more quick to anger over current affairs or people. He became less interesting and fun to be around.
Ron wasn’t the first in my family to get this disease, but the first where I was old enough to understand and be impacted by it. My paternal grandfather also had it, but because I was young, I would think it was funny that he would mistake my mom for his mother, or seemingly silly things like that. I don’t really know what that must’ve been like for his children to see this happen to their dad because I was too young to think to ask and none of them are still alive. I wasn't very close to him. I’m sure it was difficult, especially as he wasn’t necessarily father of the year to them. More recently my sister, who is the oldest, has been diagnosed with Dementia, which is different from Alzheimer’s but is related. Without going into her whole story, I'd like to share some information about these brain diseases are, and what you can do about it if you or someone you know has been showing signs or has been diagnosed. There's so much more information today than there was then.
What is Alzheimer’s and Dementia
According to the Alzheimer’s Association website, “Dementia describes a group of symptoms associated with a decline in memory, reasoning or other thinking skills.” Whereas “Alzheimer’s is a degenerative brain disease that is caused by complex brain changes following cell damage. It leads to dementia symptoms that gradually worsen over time. The most common early symptom of Alzheimer’s is trouble remembering new information because the disease typically impacts the part of the brain associated with learning first.” So the difference is cellular damage versus just the symptoms that may seem like there’s cellular damage. One is a little easier to reverse than the other.
Some interesting stats:
From the Alzheimer’s Association: “One in 3 older Americans dies with Alzheimer's or another dementia. It kills more than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined.”
“Deaths from Alzheimer's have more than doubled between 2000 and 2021, while those from heart disease — the leading cause of death — have decreased.”
“At age 70, older Americans living with Alzheimer's are twice as likely to die before age 80 than those who do not have the disease.”
“People age 65 and older survive an average of four to eight years after a diagnosis of Alzheimer's, yet some live as long as 20 years with Alzheimer's. This reflects the slow, uncertain progression of the disease.”
“It may be possible to prevent up to 80% of dementia cases if all known risk factors were targeted.” China’s leading prevention expert, Professor Jin-Tai Yu from Fudan University in Shanghai.
According to the CDC, “there are 5.8 million Americans living with dementia or Alzheimers.”
Alzheimer's starts 20 - 30 years prior to diagnosis, but can be accelerated by exposure to a traumatic event or a bacteria.
Adult brains shrink by 1-2% per year.
A study of 15,000 people in the Journal of Gerontology found married people are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s, and divorced people are twice as likely as others to develop it. More men are affected by Alzheimer’s than women.
Dr Lee published a JAMA article “Participants who had cataracts removed were 30% less likely to develop dementia, compared with those who didn’t have surgery. Improves stimuli to the brain, by allowing higher quality engagement and light to the brain.”
In Eastern Medicine, the organs are associated with different emotions, but I couldn’t find one associated to the brain. In my shamanic teachings I’ve been told that we chose our illnesses, and if this is true, then Alzheimer’s or dementia is like choosing to disappear from life.
Symptoms
Some of the symptoms that are associated with neurodegenerative disease are:
Blank look on their face
Mixing up words or forgetting names
Slower processing of information (difficulty learning new things)
Erratic sleep
Feeling overwhelmed in general
Not getting the same lift from caffeine
Not engaging with family and friends, becoming more withdrawn, and not wanting to see people.
Mood swings
Repeating oneself
Poor decision making leaving people more susceptible to scams
How it happens
Many people think that it’s all about genetics, and if it runs in your family, then that’s their destiny. But the good news is this is not necessarily true. Having the genes, and triggering those genes, is something you have in your control and I’ll list some preventative steps below. But first, here are the three major ways that the brain is affected:
1) Neurology entanglement - the signals between your synapses get lost or confused because of tau proteins tangling up the neurons
2) Brain atrophy - actual shrinkage of the brain
3) Beta amyloid plaques - which are hardened proteins between the tissues
Any one of these three things can prevent proper signaling, as pathways get cut, which allows for the degeneration of neurons, which then decreases our ability to form new memories or recall old ones. This inflammatory response starts as a protection, but if it remains chronic it can cause build up and create damage. These proteins can be triggered by inflammation, heavy metal exposure, and activated genes.
According to the book, The End of Alzheimer’s by Dr Dale Bredesen, he lists 14 risk factors for developing Alzheimers. Many of them are related, but I’m listing them below with a short explanation on what each means:
1) Inflammation - which can be caused by stressors such as over exercise, gut issues, or toxicities in the body.
2) Infections - like chronic viruses and microbes such as the herpes symplexes, lyme, borellia, and candida.
3) Fasting Insulin levels are important because insulin resistance affects the brain
4) Hormone status because adrenal function, thyroid, and high levels of cortisol have been shown to shrink the brain when they are imbalanced.
5) Toxic exposure from chemicals, heavy metals like aluminum and mercury, and even mycotoxins from mold can impact thinking and brain health.
6) How balanced your immune system is - if you’re constantly fighting colds and flus, allergies, or autoimmune, then the energy output for cellular repair and renewal is likely going towards fighting these things instead.
7) Your microbiome - it’s been long established that there is a gut brain connection and if you have too many of the wrong pathogens, and not enough of the right ones, if will affect everything from your mood to your brain chemistry.
8) Blood brain barrier - If it’s compromised and things like viruses, parasites or heavy metals are getting in and not leaving, this will create issues.
9) Body Mass Index - The higher your BMI is, the higher your estrogen and inflammation levels are.
10) Prediabetes - Fasting glucose over 95, and type 2 am fasting over 126. Daily testing is important. Alzheimer’s is now even being referred to as Type 3 Diabetes because of the strong connection between blood glucose and brain disfunction. See my newsletter on blood sugar for more information.
11) Volumetrics - volume of the brain based on brain scans can show shrinkage due to alcohol, dehydration, hormones amongst other things.
12) Targeted treatment - Using medications for one illness can negatively impact other parts of the body, like the brain and liver.
13) Nutrient deficiencies like low B vitamins, particularly B12 and B6 can lead to atrophy of the brain.
14) Genetics - You get a gene variant from each parent. If you have an APOe 4/4 allele you have the greatest risk. About 3-4% of the population have both alleles, and 20% has at least one 4 in their genes. 80% of the population has a lower genetic risk, but can still get it by exposure to the other risk factors. Unfortunately, those with an APOe4 are more prone to brain atrophy, neuronal toxicity, have more chance for plaque build up in the brain, aberrant brain activity, poor glucose and cholesterol metabolism, vascular function, mitochondrial function, and building of neurons, and more overall inflammation.
What You Can Do
Before you panic and start thinking, Oh no! I have these symptoms! I forget people’s names all the time! Relax, because remember stress is a contributing factor. There are now proven ways to stop and reverse early and mid-stage Dementia and Alzheimer’s with lifestyle changes.
Dr Bredesen published a paper in 2015 on a protocol he developed called the Metabolic Enhancement for NeuroDegeneration or M.E.N.D. “He did a small study of 10 patients who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The first 10 patients who have utilized this program include patients with memory loss associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD), amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), or subjective cognitive impairment (SCI). Nine of the 10 displayed subjective or objective improvements in cognition beginning within 3-6 months, with the one failure being a patient with very late stage AD. Six of the patients had had to discontinue working or were struggling with their jobs at the time of presentation, and all were able to return to work or continue working with improved performance. Improvements have been sustained, and at this time the longest patient follow-up is two and one-half years from initial treatment, with sustained and marked improvement.” The protocol contains more than 2 dozen interventions that are now being used at hospitals and clinics to treat people with the diagnosis.
The M.E.N.D Protocol, which closely mirrors the IHP DESTRESS protocol teachings from Dr Cabral, is outlined in this podcast, summarized below:
Behavioral changes you can make on your own or with my help
1) Eat a low glycemic diet (eliminated processed grains like breads and pastas), with no fried foods which create free radical damage to the brain, no processed meats or foods, and no charred foods.
2) Fast overnight for at least 12 hours
3) Reduce stress using ashwagandha, meditation, yoga
4) Optimize sleep getting 7-9 hours per night, and treat sleep apnea
5) Exercise 30-60 min per day, 4-6 days per week
6) Do brain stimulating activities like learning a new language, memory, math or word games, dancing, laughing, etc
7) Consider using Exercise with Oxygen Therapy (EWOT) or Hyper Baric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) to oxygenate the brain and body
8) Drink purified hydrogen water
9) Stop drinking alcohol, smoking, or eating saturated fats, especially if you have the 4/4 allele as your body can’t metabolize those things as efficiently as it should.
10) Maintain a healthy weight
11) Take Cognitive enhancement herbs and foods such as Bacopa, Lion’s Mane mushrooms, Gingko Biloba
12) Improve antioxidant capacity through wild blueberries, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Vitamins C and E, NAC
13) Mitochondrial issues can be improved with CoQ10, PQQ, NAC, Selenium, Zinc, B5, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Acetyl Carnitine.
14) Increase sirtuins with Resveratrol
15) Take medium chain triglycerides found in coconut oil
Test and Balance with a doctor
16) Reduce homocysteine below 7 on bloodwork using methylated B6, B12, Zinc, Magnesium, Betaine and Tri-methyl glycine
17) Get B12 levels above 500
18) Reduce CRP below a 1 using Turmeric or Curcumin, Omega 3s
19) Reduce fasting insulin below 7
20) A1C 5.5 or below
21) Hydroxy Vitamin D levels between 50-70 nano mil or 80 max on your bloodwork
22) Hormone imbalances should be tested and then balanced as necessary
Test and Balance with me
23) Test and rebalance GI system by removing the bad stuff and replacing with good bacteria
24) Optimizing Zinc/Copper ratios by running a Minerals and Metals Test
25) Reduce heavy metals by doing an annual Heavy Metal Detox
26) Do regular quarterly detoxes to keep the liver and blood functioning properly to remove toxins from the body
27) Take a Biological Age Test to find out your genotype and how your body is aging
28) Test and balance your inflammation with an Omega 3 test
Take this free 3-min online test to see your Alzheimer’s risk.
All of these things have been shown to help stop oxidation and improve brain health. One thing that hasn’t helped are the Alzheimer’s drugs on the market. None are currently shown to significantly slow, stop or reverse the progression of the disease. Despite this, in 2021 the FDA accelerated the release of a drug called Aduhelm as a treatment stating it was “reasonably likely to help”, but with no proof and early studies don’t back it up. Side effects include headaches, brain swelling and falling. The Cleveland Clinic refused to sell it.
I hope this information will inspire you to take action for yourself or share it with anyone you think might find it helpful. You can find out more at alzheimersprevention.info
It’s never too late to be healthy. Staying healthy is not just something you do for yourself, but also for the ones you love.