The Alzheimer’s Association just concluded their International Conference in Los Angeles, and their most promising finding is reflected in the title above. In the words of Maria Carill, the Alzheimer’s Association’s chief science officer “While there is no proven cure or [drug] treatment for Alzheimer’s, a large body of research now strongly suggests that combining healthy habits promotes good brain health and reduces your risk of cognitive decline.”
This is really not “news,” however, as we knew this back in 2009, when I served as a Master Trainer for the Alzheimer’s Association, before they lost their way, and abandoned that message to cater to the misguided FDA and greedy but flush pharmaceutical industry. But now billions of wasted dollars later, they are being forced back to the reality that a healthy lifestyle, may be our most powerful weapon, at least for prevention. And since there are no good drugs that can stop this, prevention is our primary (most cost effective) hope. But the evidence for this is now much stronger. For example:
While the insightful “dementia prevention” study, published by Lancet in 2016 proclaimed 30% of dementia cases could be prevented, a new study presented at this conference, confirmed an assertion I and others made years ago. They found even those at high genetic risk, who adopt four or five healthy lifestyle habits — a healthy diet, at least 150 minutes a week of moderate to vigorous physical activity, only light or moderate alcohol, no smoking, and engaging in mentally stimulating activity – “reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s by 60%, compared to people who had only one of those healthier behaviors.” Having a good education and continuing to learn new things (cognitive reserve), was additionally protective.
Having said that, the question remains. If unhealthy habits account for 60% of cognitive decline what accounts for the other 40%? Fortunately, there were several studies presented at this conference, which provide insight into other things important to keep an eye on. These include air pollution, gingivitis, excessive alcohol consumption, especially in women, bacterial and viral infections,
Dr. Bredesen, (see previous posts) from UCLA, likely the most knowledgeable Alzheimer’s researcher in the world, notes that amyloid beta plaques, commonly associated with Alzheimer’s, and a favorite target for drug research, is actually protective, against various microbes and viruses that can invade the body and brain. This is likely the reason why none of the studies focused on removing this amyloid have been effective in slowing the disease, in fact often the opposite.
Some of the most common bacteria and viruses to guard against are those which come from or are involved in gum disease (“Previously, researchers identified P. gingivalis in the brains of greater than 90% of people with Alzheimer’s”), mycotoxins found in molds (like Aspergillus ), the cold sore virus (herpes simplex HSV), and tick’s bites (Borrelia which causes Lyme disease), and nasal fungi.
Other factors not mentioned in conference reports include head injuries or TBI’s, hormonal decline, extended exposure to some anesthesias, zinc copper ratios, and other heavy metal toxicity, herbicides and insecticides, chemo therapy, and over 200 medications.
One recent study[i] noted commonly prescribed drugs, such as ant-cholinergic drugs, particularly antidepressants such as paroxetine or amitriptyline, bladder antimuscarinics such as oxybutynin or tolterodine, antipsychotics such as chlorpromazine or olanzapine and antiepileptic drugs such as oxcarbazepine or carbamazepine meds are tied to a nearly 50% higher dementia risk in older adults.
Other meds including, statins, anti-anxiety meds, antacids, antihistamines, prolonged antibiotics, some sleep and some pain meds have also been linked to greater risk for cognitive decline.
(There are actually more than 70 different contributors to cognitive decline. If you’d like a more comprehensive list send me an email at David@abcbrain.org and I will send that to you.)
But what of those who have already progressed to mild cognitive impairment or the early stages of Alzheimer’s. If you happen to be a health care professional who attended one of my continuing education classes 2010-2013, you will recall our review of the research of Dr. Suzanne Craft, formerly of Washington state (now at Wake Forest in NC), on diabetes and intranasal insulin, for Alzheimer’s. It appears that after years of interruptions and delays, she is finally back at it.
At AAIC 2019, Dr. Craft reported her 18-month results from an open-label extension of her SNIFF study, a Phase 2/3 trial evaluating the use of intranasal insulin for people with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease. The study found that, for a group of just over 40 participants who used the original drug delivery device, those treated with insulin had significantly better cognitive and functional test scores compared with those who received placebo.
While this may help with various types of cognitive decline it’s likely most effective for those driven by insulin resistance or diabetes. However, it suggests significant value for almost any intervention that improves metabolism and energy production in the mitochondria of the brain, which would include, addressing hormonal, particularly thyroid issues, a ketogenic diet, green tea, berberine, AMPK activator (which helps convert belly fat to energy) and exercise : )
Note: It’s been a while since my last post. Last October we opened a new clinic Hope Memory Care & Brain Center, based on our Advanced Clinical Training in Dr. Bredesen’s protocol, and my MD partner and I have been swamped with new patients, and a sincere desire to ensure that every person makes good progress. If you know of someone in your area experiencing serious cognitive issues you may want to encourage them to go to https://www.ifm.org/ and look for a Functional Medicine practitioner in their area who has received advanced clinical training in the Bredesen RECODE protocol, or contact https://www.ahnphealth.com . If you live in the intermountain West you can go to our new website at http://hopememorycare.com (note while this is not yet secured by a certificate as we do not sell anything there, it is safe to visit and watch the videos, or for more info simply give me a call at 801-529-8238.
[i] https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/24/health/dementia-risk-drug-study/index.html
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
Prevention Strategies 
