The so called Mediterranean diet consisting of fruits,
veggies, nuts, beans and whole grains, fish and olive oil / canola oil is
generally recognized to help defend against heart disease including cardio
vascular disease / strokes, cancer, sinus, and asthma. Current statistical
evidence suggests that it can also protect against Alzheimer's.
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a
neurological condition in which the brain's nerve cells actually die.
Brain cells are
actually lost .. Brain mass
actually shrinks over a period of years.
Alzheimer's is not a popular diagnosis .. more persons
exhibit symptoms than have an Alzheimer's Diagnosis.
The progression of the
Alzheimer’s condition involves a run-away toxic protein beta-amyloid.
Gooey sticky fibrous clumps of amyloid plaque
cause brain cell dysfunction & death
Very few persons under 60 have an Alzheimer's diagnosis. The incidence of
Alzheimer's doubles every 5 years after 60.
In 1906 a German
Dr. Alzheimer reported significant changes in the brain tissue of a
deceased patient who had exhibited unusual mental symptoms.
Dr. Alzheimer
reported that an autopsy revealed clumps of tangled fibers in the brain.
The clumps of tangled
fibers are now called “amyloid plaques” and the tangles themselves are
named “neurofibrillary tangles”.
2006: Those clumps,
amyloid plaques, are the definitive diagnosis for Alzheimer’s.
2006: the test for
those clumps is possible only post mortem
There is currently,
2006, no known chemical marker / lab test for monitoring of the
development and progression amyloid plaques.
The beta-amyloid creates
sticky plaques and fiber like tangles that gradually disables / kills nerve
cells within the brains regions devoted to memory and learning.
There is progress being
made with a counter acting protein, transthyretin, in animal / rodent studies.
In animals the
Alzheimer's / Amyloid Plaque disease process depends in large part on the
precise ratio between ‘good’ transthyretin protein and the ‘bad’ beta-amyloid
protein.
There also are lower levels of
chemicals, neurotransmitters, in the brain of Alzheimer's patients.
Neurotransmitters facilitate the
communication between nerve / brain cells.
Alzheimer's Disease may disrupt
normal thinking and memory by interfering with the messages between nerve
cells.
Nerve impulses / communication
between brain cells occurs in the presence of neurotransmitters. In
Alzheimer's the density per cc of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)is reduced.
Medicare spent $91 billion on Alzheimer’s in 2005.
Alzheimer's care is projected to be $160 billion in 2010 & $189 billion by
2015.
Exercise at least twice a week in sessions lasting 20 minutes to reduce your
risk of developing
Alzheimer's Disease by 60%.
The amyloid protein damages brain tissue by interacting with
the enzyme amyloid beta alcohol dehydrogenase (ABAD) which then releasing the
toxic substances that kills brain cells.
January, 2007: Alzheimer's
vaccine 'in a patch'. University
of South Florida researchers reported the patch was able to clear
brain-damaging plaques from mice.
60% - 80% of Alzheimer's
Disease victims have a genetic predisposition
Thus, 20% - 40% are victims of Alzheimer's
due to environmental or lifestyle variables.
You have to stay in shape. My grandmother,
she started walking five miles a day when she was 60. She's 97 today and we
don't know where the hell she is. ~Ellen DeGeneres
The scariest part of middle age is the knowledge that you'll grow out of
it!
~ Doris Day
People with
Alzheimer suffer from impaired memory and orientation, have
limited concentration, exhibit poor planning / judgment and often exhibit
personality changes.
Initial symptoms often involve
impaired communication, understanding, reading, or writing.
Alzheimer's disease is a slowly
developing condition.
Over a period of up to 20
years cognitive changes / impairments become increasingly
debilitating.
The underlying pathologic
conditions may be present for years before / without diagnosis.
Progression and time frame are
totally variable from person to person.
Alzheimer's disease can be
terminal in as few as 8 to 10 years after diagnosis.
More women than men
develop Alzheimer's, but the incidence by age is similar among men and
women.. women just out live man & age is the primary criteria for
developing Alzheimer's.
Age is the most critical risk factor for Alzheimer's Disease.
Alzheimer's is
not a popular diagnosis
The words / concepts of
Guardian, Power of Attorney & Alzheimer's are often present in the
same document.
Diagnosed or
undiagnosed Alzheimer's is a medical situation that can send a physician
to court to be countered by an 'expert witness'.
The diagnosis can result in the loss of
financial and personal independence.
The brain tissue deterioration due to
amyloid plaque is well underway when the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer's
disease becomes clinically obvious / unavoidable.
Early diagnosis, medical treatment and
lifestyle optimization often can extend functionality .. if not offer a
cure.
21st century Scientists do not yet fully
understand what causes Alzheimer's disease.
Diabetes, high cholesterol and
heart disease increase one’s chance of experiencing the wonders of
Alzheimer’s.
65% increase in the risk of
developing AD among those with diabetes compared with those who did
not have diabetes.
2005 – Elevated levels
of insulin, the hormone that is involved with diabetes, might cause
brain inflammation and play a role in the onset of Alzheimer's.
High insulin was also linked
to high levels of beta amyloid.
Some success has been
reported with NSAIDs.
Animal studies indicate a
correlation between Alzheimer's risk and high cholesterol.
Recall the APOE genes & it's
relationship to Alzheimer's & cholesterol.
Two recent studies show that
patients on the cholesterol lowering medication "STATIN" correlated
with a reduced incidence of Alzheimer's.
The effects may be related
to some other action of the "STATIN" class of medication.
Genetics are responsible for up
to 80% of Alzheimer's and the same genes effect both men and women.
Those with the Alzheimer's genetic
mutation on gene APOEe4 are 60% - 80% likely to be afflicted.
2005: General Psychiatry
reports an 80% genetic link to Alzheimer's demonstrated by a Swedish
study on 12, 000 geriatric patients.
Nationalized medicine in
Sweden makes it a wonderful resource. Everyone's in the
system.
Researchers from the
University of Southern California report a study on 392 pairs of twins
( where one or both had Alzheimer's ) demonstrated that Alzheimer’s is
between 60% and 80% heredity.
It was a 60% - 80% certainty
that if one twin was diagnosed with Alzheimer's the other twin would
be too.
APOE gene that controls the
manufacture of apo-lipo-protein e, a protein that acts as a
cholesterol carrier.
An omega-3 fatty acid called docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA,
reduced the risk of dementia by about half.
The researchers
looked for a reduced risk associated with seven other omega-3 fatty
acids, but only DHA had any effect.
Mackerel, lake
trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon are high in DHA.
Between 2001 and 2002, Dr. Mark
Tuszinski and a team of researchers & surgeons at University of California San Diego
surgically implanted genetically modified tissue into the brains of
eight Alzheimer's patients.
This project suggest the
gene therapy has slowed cognitive decline by as much as 50%.
If individuals are worried that
they may be at elevated genetic risk due to family history, the best
route is to remain mentally active, maintain healthy cholesterol levels
/ blood glucose levels and to exercise.
Brain trauma / head trauma also
increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's.
This shrinkage is an
indicator for Dementia &
Alzheimer's diagnosis.
Hormone replacement
therapy can balance stress hormone levels with the friendly hormones HGH &
Testosterone.
2006: A 100% positive diagnosis
is only possible post mortem.
The diagnosis for Alzheimer's
is the presence of amyloid plaques in the brain.
The only definite way to
diagnose Alzheimer's Disease is examine brain tissue post mortem.
Post mortem / autopsy
Currently there is no marker /
test to identify amyloid plaques in living patient.
Currently the best diagnostics
result in an Alzheimer’s Specialty Center is only 80% - 90% correct
diagnosis.
= 20% misdiagnosis even at
Alzheimer’s Specialty Centers.
Alzheimer's symptoms may
present of 10 or even 20 years before symptoms are correctly
diagnosed.
There probably is not one single
cause.
In several studies, both
Estrogen HRT and testosterone HRT
appear to provide significant protection against Alzheimer's.
Research has found that a high
level of the amino acid homocysteine increases one's risk.
B vitamins, especially folic
acid, will help control high homocysteine levels.
There is a possible link between
depression and Alzheimer’s.
The question is did depression cause
Alzheimer’s or did cognitive loss cause depression.]
A Columbia University team tested
the odors on 150 people with minimal to mild cognitive impairment.
Lemon, lilac and leather are
three of 10 odors that can be used to tell whether a person is likely to
develop dementia, according to US scientists.
Alzheimer's Disease patients
performed poorly in terms of identifying 10 specific smells.
The odors also included clove,
smoke, menthol, pineapple, soap, strawberry and the artificial
'egg-like' odor that is added to natural gas.
As the condition progresses
patients may become aggressive
It is the personality changes that
often force family members to choose professional care over home care.
The average lifetime cost for an
individual with AD is estimated at $174,000, according to the Alzheimer’s
Association.
Late stage patients demonstrate
perceptual, speech and walking disorders.
Final stage patients may loose the
ability to swallow or become incontinent
Patients lose their ability to
live independently.
There is
currently, 2006, no marker / test for monitoring of the development and
progression amyloid plaques.
A marker / test for amyloid
plaques is necessary to even measure the effectiveness of anti-amyloid
therapy.
Swedish Doctors report in 2005
that abnormal concentrations of three proteins associated with the initial
stages of Alzheimer's disease common in the protective / nutritive fluid
that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
The Swedish researchers report
indicates that brain changes are well under way when the CSF changes can
be measured.
The brain tissue deterioration
due to amyloid plaque is well underway when the earliest symptoms of
Alzheimer's disease becomes clinically obvious.
Genetics
Asia Aging Study studied
the links between age related diabetes the APOE e4 gene , Alzheimer’s Disease, and vascular
related
dementia.
Vascular Dementia is related to
strokes.
They found that study participants
with diabetes and APOE e4 had a higher risk of Alzheimer than
did participants with neither.
Individuals with the APOE-e 4 gene anomaly
consistently produce lower than average brain activity / glucose utilization in several
specific & common / Alzheimer's related areas of the
brain.
Poor base line performance on
memory and assorted cognitive tests were not associated with APOE e4 gene.
Poor performance on subsequent
tests were again
associated with this gene.
People with this gene experience
accelerated cognitive decline.
One major diagnostic
efforts involves the use of21st century imaging, magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) & positron emission tomography (PET), to measure brain activity,
brain structure and brain .function. Brain scans may one day help detect
Alzheimer's disease and other forms of cognitive impairment before symptoms
appear.
Positron Emission
Tomography (PET) Imaging
PET imaging visually demonstrates
metabolism of glucose (which the brain uses for energy) in specific brain
regions, this demonstrates the level brain activity in specific areas.
In one study, lower than average /
mean metabolism at any point during the study was correlated with a faster cognitive decline.
Or, once it starts .. hang on ..
Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI)
Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI) are very effective diagnostic tool when used over a period of
time. Reduced brain size over a period of years is demonstrated by MRI
scans.
MRI produces cross-sectional images by
detecting the small density changes in the tissues. MRI scans reveal a
contrast between the densities of normal and abnormal tissues.
MRI's are useful over a period of
years to show changes.
An MRI can document an actual loss of
brain/nerve cells in the areas of the brain involved with memory and
cognition.
To determine whether persons in a very
early phase of developing Alzheimer's could be identified prior to a clinical
diagnosis.
Doctors can identify people who are
developing the disease over time with high accuracy based on significantly
smaller brain shape from the baseline. Will also demonstrate brain
volume decreases for specific brain region.
No treatment can stop Alzheimer's
disease. Some current medications appear to slow the progress of the disease or
even reverse the symptoms for a period of months.
If You got this far down the page:
There is another protein, in addition to
beta-amyloid, that is intimately involved in the tangled plaque. tau.
The nuerofibrillary tangles are composed
primarily of the protein tau. Tau is a component of healthy neurons,
however in Alzheimer's an enzyme Cdk5 weakens tau's physical structure and
function .. which somehow causes it to form tangles.
The good news is that in test animals
suppressing the secretion of Cdk5 has shown very positive results.
had any effect.