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Alzheimer's supplements herbs vitamins natural remedies, alternative treatment, diet and food - medication and drug therapy information.
Natural herbs and nutrients as a treatment, and review of research studies, role of diet and food
September 5 2015 by Ray Sahelian, M.D.Leading a healthy lifestyle with a good diet, exercising, keeping the mind busy, getting good sleep, keeping a normal weight, smoking little or none, and perhaps taking low doses of antioxidants could all be helpful in preventing this condition or reducing the risk. Obesity increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's and also speeds the onset.
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, is a progressive disorder characterized by widespread loss of brain cells called neurons, beta-amyloid deposits in the cerebral blood vessels, development of plaques and the presence of neurofibrillary tangles. These changes, occurring in the association area of the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus and the middle and temporal lobes, are accompanied by decreased concentrations of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. In my opinion, it appears that a deficiency in antioxidant status may accelerate the progression of Alzheimer's disease, and making an effort through diet or supplements to have adequate antioxidant status can reduce the risk.
Role of diet and food, lifestyle factors
A diet that has fish, poultry nuts, and certain fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Those who eat nutrients specifically selected for brain health have a lower risk of developing it compared with others. Saturated fatty acids in red meat and butter, need to be reduced. Others, such as omega-3 fatty acids, omega-6 fatty acids, vitamin E, vitamin B12 and folate, benefit the brain. People least likely to develop the disease eat more olive oil-based salad dressing, nuts, fish, tomatoes, poultry, cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, fruits, and dark and green leafy vegetables and ate less red meat, organ meat or high-fat dairy products. Eating baked or broiled fish as little as once a week may boost brain health and lower the risk for mild cognitive impairment.
Drinking fruit and vegetable juices frequently could help reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease in individuals at risk for developing the disease. There is evidence from both lab and animal studies that high levels of reactive oxygen species -- harmful byproducts of normal metabolism -- may be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease. While vitamins and polyphenols contained in plant foods exert antioxidant effects and thus blunt the action of oxidants, certain ways of preparing these foods can deplete their nutrient content. Juicing, however, can preserve much of the antioxidant content of fruits and vegetables. The American Journal of Medicine, 2006.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that a low carbohydrate diet that reduced total caloric intake by 30% prevented the development of a fundamental feature of Alzheimer's disease in mice genetically engineered to develop the disease.
What keeps you healthy overall, such as regular exercise and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, also helps prevent Alzheimer’s. People who are socially engaged are less likely to develop memory loss. Keeping the brain active with puzzles or games can help.
Running more than 10 miles a week may reduce the risk of dying from Alzheimer's disease. Walking can help, too, if the amount of energy expended is equivalent to running more than 10 miles weekly.
Natural remedy for Alzheimer’s Disease treatment, herbs vitamins and supplements- Alternatives to medication,
While scientists have not fully determined the actual causes of Alzheimer’s disease, a number of treatment options have been proposed or tried over the years. Although much more research needs to be done in order to find out the role of these supplements as a treatment, I think it is appropriate to give them a try since this condition currently has no cure or effective treatment. You are not likely to find this information in any official Alzheimer's disease association or foundation. Some natural options for treatment or prevention include (discuss with your doctor first before you use these natural pills and to make sure they don't interfere with your current medications):
It is nearly impossible to know which of the above nutrients or herbs, or combinations thereof are helpful as a treatment, prevention, or alternative Alzheimer's disease medication. It may be a trial and error process until the right combination or dosage is found. It is also very difficult to predict how these supplements interact with Alzheimer's medication prescription drugs. One has to be cautious with some of these supplements, particularly galantamine and huperzine since they can be quite potent. Also, when taking multiple supplements, make sure to reduce the dose of each one since they add on to each other and one could have insomnia or feel overstimulated.
The information I read here is helpful but unless I missed it there were no suggestions as to dosages for Alzheimer patients. Do you have any suggestions and I realize that you can't diagnose or prescribe.
I can't give specific dosages since each person is different, is taking different other supplements, or different medications, has a different body weight, age, tolerance level etc. So I can't be specific.
Natural herbs and nutrients as a treatment, and review of research studies, role of diet and food
September 5 2015 by Ray Sahelian, M.D.Leading a healthy lifestyle with a good diet, exercising, keeping the mind busy, getting good sleep, keeping a normal weight, smoking little or none, and perhaps taking low doses of antioxidants could all be helpful in preventing this condition or reducing the risk. Obesity increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's and also speeds the onset.
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, is a progressive disorder characterized by widespread loss of brain cells called neurons, beta-amyloid deposits in the cerebral blood vessels, development of plaques and the presence of neurofibrillary tangles. These changes, occurring in the association area of the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus and the middle and temporal lobes, are accompanied by decreased concentrations of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. In my opinion, it appears that a deficiency in antioxidant status may accelerate the progression of Alzheimer's disease, and making an effort through diet or supplements to have adequate antioxidant status can reduce the risk.
Role of diet and food, lifestyle factors
A diet that has fish, poultry nuts, and certain fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Those who eat nutrients specifically selected for brain health have a lower risk of developing it compared with others. Saturated fatty acids in red meat and butter, need to be reduced. Others, such as omega-3 fatty acids, omega-6 fatty acids, vitamin E, vitamin B12 and folate, benefit the brain. People least likely to develop the disease eat more olive oil-based salad dressing, nuts, fish, tomatoes, poultry, cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, fruits, and dark and green leafy vegetables and ate less red meat, organ meat or high-fat dairy products. Eating baked or broiled fish as little as once a week may boost brain health and lower the risk for mild cognitive impairment.
Drinking fruit and vegetable juices frequently could help reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease in individuals at risk for developing the disease. There is evidence from both lab and animal studies that high levels of reactive oxygen species -- harmful byproducts of normal metabolism -- may be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease. While vitamins and polyphenols contained in plant foods exert antioxidant effects and thus blunt the action of oxidants, certain ways of preparing these foods can deplete their nutrient content. Juicing, however, can preserve much of the antioxidant content of fruits and vegetables. The American Journal of Medicine, 2006.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that a low carbohydrate diet that reduced total caloric intake by 30% prevented the development of a fundamental feature of Alzheimer's disease in mice genetically engineered to develop the disease.
What keeps you healthy overall, such as regular exercise and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, also helps prevent Alzheimer’s. People who are socially engaged are less likely to develop memory loss. Keeping the brain active with puzzles or games can help.
Running more than 10 miles a week may reduce the risk of dying from Alzheimer's disease. Walking can help, too, if the amount of energy expended is equivalent to running more than 10 miles weekly.
Natural remedy for Alzheimer’s Disease treatment, herbs vitamins and supplements- Alternatives to medication,
While scientists have not fully determined the actual causes of Alzheimer’s disease, a number of treatment options have been proposed or tried over the years. Although much more research needs to be done in order to find out the role of these supplements as a treatment, I think it is appropriate to give them a try since this condition currently has no cure or effective treatment. You are not likely to find this information in any official Alzheimer's disease association or foundation. Some natural options for treatment or prevention include (discuss with your doctor first before you use these natural pills and to make sure they don't interfere with your current medications):
- Drink more fresh vegetable and fruit juices, particularly vegetable juices since they have less fructose. These juices have tons of beneficial antioxidants.
- Exposure to sunlight in the morning and sleep pattern restoration are helpful. One study shows exposure to sunlight in the morning followed by melatonin supplement use at night helps restore healthy sleeping patterns.
- Therapy with B vitamins, such as B6, folic acid, and B12 (methylcobalamin) that lower homocysteine levels. It is thought that a high homocysteine level in the brain causes neuronal damage leading to progression of Alzheimer's disease. High intake of niacin, particularly from food sources, may reduce the risk of age-related cognitive decline. Seniors with high levels of vitamin B12 in their blood have a lower risk of developing the disease. Curr Alzheimer Res. 2014 Dec 18. Associations between Alzheimer's Disease and Blood Homocysteine, Vitamin B12, and Folate: A Case-Control Study.
- Vitamin E antioxidant could be helpful in reducing the severity of Alzheimer's disease. At this point I would not recommend more than 100 units per day when taken for decades. If you plan to take Vitamin-E, use a form that has all the tocopherols and tocotrienols, not dl-tocopherol. Alzheimer's patients given a "pharmacological" dose of vitamin E experienced slower declines in thinking and memory and required less caregiver time than those taking a placebo, according Dr. Maurice Dysken, lead author of a new study published Dec. 31, 2013 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
- Another very important antioxidant is alpha lipoic acid, at a dose of 10 to 20 mg a few times a week. Many herbs have antioxidant potential including curcumin, acai, goji, mangosteen, etc.
- Acetyl L-carnitine protects against amyloid-beta neurotoxicity and may be helpful in combination with medicines. The acetylcarnitine dose should not be more than 100 to 300 mg a day a few times a week.
- Providing acetylcholine precursors, such as choline. Maximum dose 100 to 500 mg a few times a week.
- Use of ginkgo biloba should certainly be considered but research studies have provided mixed results regarding the benefits of this herbal extract.
- Use of curcumin, the yellow compound found in turmeric. Curcumin supplements are now available. Curcumin is lately getting more attention and appears to be a good preventive spice.
- Blocking the breakdown of acetylcholine with pharmaceutical drugs or natural supplements such as huperzine. Clinical efficacy and safety of huperzine Alpha in treatment of mild to moderate Alzheimer disease, a placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized trial. To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of huperzine Alpha in treatment of patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer disease Two hundred and two patients with the diagnosis of possible or probable Alzheimer's disease from 15 centers the nationwide were randomly divided into two groups: huperzine Alpha group (given 400 micro g/day for 12 weeks) and placebo group. In comparison with the baseline data, there was an improvement of 4.6 points in cognition; an improvement in behavior and mood with 59% of the Alzheimer disease patients being on the mend clinically. A safe and effective medicine, huperzine Alpha remarkably improves the cognition, behavior, ADL, and mood of Alzheimer disease patients. Zhonghua Yi Xue Za Zhi. 2002.
- People who eat an average of 180 mg or more a day of DHA, a fatty acid found in fish oils, have a lower incidence of Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia, compared with people who consume less DHA, according to epidemiologic data collected in the Framingham Heart Study. In a study, reported in The Journal of Neuroscience, mice that ate DHA-enriched chow showed less beta-amyloid build-up in the brain than mice fed regular chow.
Consuming more omega-3 fatty acids -- found in many types of fish -- may benefit people at risk for Alzheimer's disease; University of Illinois, news release, May 19, 2015. - Improving blood flow to brain cells
- Mood improvement through nutrients and herbs
- Drinking herbal teas, including green tea
- Hormone therapies with testosterone and DHEA -- maybe. Caution is advised.
- Muira puama, a Brazilian plant used for sexual enhancement, may have acetylcholinesterase inhibiting activity.
- Scyllo-Inositol has been studied in recent years.
- A high concentration of silica in drinking water seems to protect against Alzheimer's disease
- Blue green algae have a cholinesterase inhibitor
It is nearly impossible to know which of the above nutrients or herbs, or combinations thereof are helpful as a treatment, prevention, or alternative Alzheimer's disease medication. It may be a trial and error process until the right combination or dosage is found. It is also very difficult to predict how these supplements interact with Alzheimer's medication prescription drugs. One has to be cautious with some of these supplements, particularly galantamine and huperzine since they can be quite potent. Also, when taking multiple supplements, make sure to reduce the dose of each one since they add on to each other and one could have insomnia or feel overstimulated.
The information I read here is helpful but unless I missed it there were no suggestions as to dosages for Alzheimer patients. Do you have any suggestions and I realize that you can't diagnose or prescribe.
I can't give specific dosages since each person is different, is taking different other supplements, or different medications, has a different body weight, age, tolerance level etc. So I can't be specific.