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Study Shows Memory Loss of Alzheimer’s Improved By Lifestyle Changes, Supplements

Study Shows Memory Loss of Alzheimer’s Improved By Lifestyle Changes, Supplements

A  study published in the online edition of the journal Aging, reported that nine out of ten participants who followed a comprehensive anti-aging program to reverse memory loss showed signs of improvement at three and six months.

Six  of the ten who had reported that they had discontinued working because of their cognitive impairment or had been struggling at work, were all were able to return to work or continue at their jobs with improved performance. Those in the study with relatively milder cognitive impairment fared better. One patient in the study  who was classified as having late stage Alzheimer’s Disease did not improve.

A small study published in the online edition of the journal Aging, reported that nine out of ten participants who followed a comprehensive program to reverse memory loss showed signs of improvement at three and six months.

Six  of the ten who had reported that they had discontinued working because of their cognitive impairment or had been struggling at work, were all were able to return to work or continue at their jobs with improved performance. Those in the study with relatively milder cognitive impairment fared better. One patient in the study  who was classified as having late stage Alzheimer’s Disease did not improve.

This study supported by the N.I.H. from UCLA’s Buck Institute for  Research on Aging, used a 36-point therapeutic program which includes dietary guidelines, sleep optimization, exercise, and a  specific vitamin regimen, as well as medications.

The paper’s lead author, Dale  Bredesen, M.D. Professor of Neurology says,“…a broader-based therapeutic approach, rather than a single drug that aims at a single target, may be feasible and potentially more effective for the treatment of cognitive decline due to Alzheimer’s.”

The disappointing results of drug therapy in Alzheimer’s Disease caused Dr Bredesen’s to seek a therapy that takes a more comprehensive approach. “The existing Alzheimer’s drugs affect a single target, but Alzheimer’s disease is more complex. Imagine having a roof with 36 holes in it, and your drug patched one hole very well. The drug may have worked, and a single hole may have been fixed, but you still have 35 other leaks, and so the underlying process may not be affected much.”

The study’s treatment program directed patients to to do the following:

Follow a gluten free diet. Eliminate processed sugars and other processed foods from the diet.

Fast for 12 hours between dinner and breakfast, and at least three hours before bedtime.

Practice a stress reduction method  every day.

Get seven to eight hours of sleep per night.

Take Vitamin D3, Coenzyme Q10, Fish oil, and methylcobalamin (a specific form of vitamin B12) daily.

Exercise for at least one half hour four times per week.

The program also reinstated any hormone replacement therapy the patient may have been  on previously.

The results of this small study suggests that memory loss may be reversed  with a comprehensive anti-aging, healthy lifestyle therapeutic program. Its lead author Dr. Bredesen cautions us that the results need to be replicated. “The current, anecdotal results require a larger trial, not only to confirm or refute the results reported here, but also to address key questions raised, such as the degree of improvement that can be achieved routinely, how late in the course of cognitive decline reversal can be effected, whether such an approach may be effective in patients with familial Alzheimer’s disease, and last, how long improvement can be sustained”.

This study had the participants engage in a healthy eating and lifestyle program that could  lead to better health regardless of whatever the person’s underlying medical status might be. Indeed, it was noted that other  health benefits  that had nothing to do with the studied effect on memory were also shown to have  occurred. This supports the overall importance of a healthy diet and lifestyle for all of us.

For more of the latest in nutritional/ lifestyle research check all of my blog posts at www.drsobo.com/blog

For the best care in Integrative Medicine call Henry C. Sobo, M.D., at 203-348-8805 or write us at [email protected]