On 27 September 2014 a monumental research paper was published online in the revolutionary new open access scientific journal AGING.
This report describes a “novel,” comprehensive, and personalized therapeutic program developed by Dale E. Bredesen, MD at the MaryS.EastonCenter for Alzheimer’s Disease Research, UCLA. The program is based on what we know about the underlying causes of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Like the Finland (FINGER) study discussed last month (see below) it involves multiple modalities “designed to achieve metabolic enhancement for neurodegeneration (MEND).” In other words it is multifaceted program focused on improving various metabolic factors contributing to brain health including hormones, nutrition, especially inflammatory mediators and those affecting glucose and cell metabolism, and exercise.
Dr. Bredesen notes that “Based on the hypothesis that AD results from an imbalance in an extensive plasticity network, the therapy should address as many network components as possible, with the idea that a combination approach may create an effect that is more than the sum of the effects of many monotherapeutics.” (A synergistic approach)
If this sounds at all familiar to you, that’s because this “novel” “synergistic” approach is pretty much what we have been teaching on this website and in our classes for the past 4 years – a combined synergistic approach involving good nutrition (a healthy diet and supplements), physical and mental activity (click on quadrants of the brain to the right), hormone enhancement, getting a good night’s sleep, and stress management. Actually Dr. Bredesen notes they found 36 components of the network that is out of balance in Alzheimer’s, that can be rectified. (In chapter 3 of our book we identify 52 elements to be looked at, but there are likely even more that could be included.)
The point here is that there are at least 36 things that can go wrong, and contribute to AD, and every “body” is different. So, although most people with cognitive impairments have some things in common, a personalized program for each individual, focused on their particular issues and needs, eventually becomes essential for optimal outcomes. That is what we have been advocating and using in our personal consults, and that is the approach Dr. Bredesen took with each of the 10 participants in his study. And amazingly (though not surprisingly) 9 out of 10 of them improved! The only one who did not improve was in the later stages of Alzheimer’s.
It is important to note, however, that Dr. Bredesen is careful not to claim that he has reversed the disease, as his measures can only substantiate a reversal in symptoms. But those of course are what most people are most concerned about.
To his credit Dr. Bredesen used some modalities that, although I have talked about and use some of them myself, like meditation and periodic fasting, I haven’t advocated them well for others. These include yoga, and some medications, as well as meditation and daily fasting. (Fasting is advocated by Dr. Perlmutter in Grain Brain, and has been shown to trigger powerful protective forces in the brain – like glutathione – as well as enhancing cognition and memory. But it seems more appropriate for younger chubby people than older more frail seniors.)
The first 10 patients who have utilized this program included patients with memory loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), or subjective cognitive impairment (SCI). That is the one weakness. It appears that most of these individuals were younger (under the age of 70) and had milder forms of impairment.
Nevertheless, having 9 out of the 10 individuals with significant impairments display improvements in cognition within 3 to 6 months is remarkable! Six of the patients had had to discontinue working or were struggling with their jobs when they began the program, 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.
As noted the program is quite comprehensive. For a good example of his approach see his first case protocol for a 67-year-old woman who presented with two years of progressive memory loss. She held a demanding job that involved preparing analytical reports, but found herself no longer able to analyze data, calculate numbers or prepare the reports, and therefore was forced to consider quitting her job. Here is what helped:
(1) she eliminated all simple carbohydrates, leading to a weight loss of 20 pounds; (2) she eliminated gluten and processed food from her diet, and increased vegetables, fruits, and non-farmed fish; (3) in order to reduce stress, she began yoga, and ultimately became a yoga instructor; (4) as a second measure to reduce the stress of her job, she began to meditate for 20 minutes twice per day; (5) she took melatonin 0.5mg; (6) she increased her sleep from 4-5 hours per night to 7-8 hours per night; (7) she took methylcobalamin 1mg each day; (8) she took vitamin D3 2000IU each day; (9) she took fish oil 2000mg each day; (10) she took CoQ10 200mg each day; (11) she optimized her oral hygiene using an electric flosser and electric toothbrush; (12) following discussion with her primary care provider, she reinstated HRT (hormone replacement therapy) that had been discontinued following the WHI report in 2002; (13) she fasted for a minimum of 12 hours between dinner and breakfast, and for a minimum of three hours between dinner and bedtime; (14) she exercised for a minimum of 30 minutes, 4-6 days per week.1
If you would like to see and hear Dr. Bredesen talk about his approach go to:
Fortunately, unlike the Finland study, Dr. Bredesen has written up his entire report and included a chart containing an outline of his entire therapeutic system for anyone to use. If you would like a copy just go to:
http://www.impactaging.com/papers/v6/n9/pdf/100690.pdf
Or email me and I will send that to you.
If you would like to learn more about the rationale for and details of this approach, let me know and for $10 I will send you a downloadable copy of our fully searchable 250 pg book Alzheimer’s May Be Stopped Now! Here’s How, in pdf format.
Reference
Dale E. Bredesen, MD Reversal of cognitive decline: A novel therapeutic program. AGING, September 2014, Vol 6 N 9 Open and free access at: http://www.impactaging.com/papers/v6/n9/pdf/100690.pdf
High-Impact Research, Open-Access Journal. AGING primarily publishes papers of outstanding significance, exceptional novelty, and ground-breaking discoveries in all disciplines from yeast to humans and from evolution to medicine. AGING covers (in addition to traditional topics on aging) many other topics including cellular and molecular biology (regulation of translation, cell growth, death and autophagy, mitochondria, DNA damage and repair, microRNAs, stem cells), human age-related diseases, pathology in model organisms, cancer and first of all signal transduction pathways (p53, sirtuins, PI-3K/AKT/mTOR and so on) and approaches to modulate these signaling pathways. AGING welcomes scientists in all disciplines, not only those in traditional gerontology.
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