Guest guest Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 " HSI - Jenny Thompson " <hsiresearch HSI e-Alert - Brain Boosters Mon, 24 Oct 2005 07:00:00 -0400 HSI e-Alert - Brain Boosters Health Sciences Institute e-Alert **************************************************** October 24, 2005 **************************************************** Dear Reader, What can I do to help prevent Alzheimer's disease (AD)? That's one of the most common questions we receive here at HSI, through letters, e-mails and postings on the HSI Healthier Talk forums. As we've seen in recent e-Alerts, sage and lemon balm may help reduce the severity of some early Alzheimer's symptoms. And research has also shown that epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG - a flavonoid found in green tea) may reduce the aggregation of beta-amyloid plaques that contribute to Alzheimer's. But there's an even easier way to guard against Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia: Just make dietary choices that reduce homocysteine. ----------- Predicting decline ----------- As we've seen in previous studies, elevated levels of the amino acid homocysteine have been linked with Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Considerable research has also demonstrated that foods and supplements rich in vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid help reduce homocysteine levels. So, could these vitamins be effective in preventing AD? Researchers from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University recruited more than 320 healthy older men from a Veterans Affairs study on aging. At baseline, all of the men completed food-frequency questionnaires, and blood was drawn from each subject to measure B vitamins and homocysteine. Over the following three years the men took occasional tests to monitor cognitive function. At the conclusion of the study, researchers found an association between high levels of homocysteine and a decline in recall memory. High levels of folate were significantly linked to verbal fluency. Men with elevated folate levels also had less decline in spatial copying; a drawing test that measures the brain's ability to understand and reproduce geometric figures. Writing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the USDA authors concluded that, " Low B vitamin and high homocysteine concentrations predict cognitive decline. " ----------- Get the NAC ----------- Vitamins B6, B12, and folate have been proven to help metabolize homocysteine. These nutrients are abundant in asparagus, lentils, chickpeas, most varieties of beans, and especially spinach and other leafy green vegetables. But many people don't absorb B vitamins well, so in addition to these food sources a good B-complex supplement is often required to lower homocysteine levels. According to several studies, supplements of the antioxidant amino acid N-acetylcysteine (NAC) may also lower homocysteine levels. In 2001 I told you about a study that showed how NAC improved cognitive function in patients with probable Alzheimer's disease. The 24-week study of 47 subjects revealed that those participants who took NAC showed improvement in nearly every outcome measure, without experiencing any negative side effects. ----------- Add these two ----------- Once homocysteine levels are addressed, there are other nutrients that may offer further protection from Alzheimer's. In the e-Alert " Form Rides with Function " (4/20/05), I told you about two studies from Johns Hopkins University that show how two key vitamins may support cognitive function. In the first study, nearly 580 subjects, aged 60 or older, were followed for more than seven years. A diet high in vitamin E (spinach, eggs, nuts, seeds, avocados, tomatoes, peaches and blackberries) was strongly associated with a significant reduction of Alzheimer's risk. Intake of dietary vitamin C was found to be somewhat useful in reducing AD risk, but less effective than vitamin E. Nearly two years later, another Johns Hopkins team interviewed more than 4,700 subjects aged 65 or older. Supplement intake was assessed, as well as the prevalence of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, from 1995 to 1997, and again from 1998 to 2000. Evaluation of the data showed that in the first phase, those who took supplements of vitamins C and E combined had a 78 percent lower risk of AD. In the second phase, the percentage dropped to 64, but still indicated a significant level of protection. In addition, Alzheimer's risk was even lower among subjects who took a vitamin E supplement along with a multivitamin that contained vitamin C. **************************************************** ....and another thing Is FEMA taking a page from the drug companies' playbook? There's some talk going around about a possible name change for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Why? Well, the official reason is that the current name doesn't exactly describe what FEMA is designed to do. The real reason must surely go something like this: If we give it another name - ANY other name - sooner or later the public won't remember that this agency used to be FEMA. What does that have to do with drug companies? Well, imagine this. The FDA decides Cox-2 inhibitors should stay on the market indefinitely, despite the heart attack risks. Merck, clever businessopoly that it is, isn't going to miss out on all those dollars, but can they really bring back Vioxx at this point?! I mean, who would take it when they could take a Cox-2 that had never been pulled off the market? Call in the urgent response marketing team: It's time for an extreme makeover - dangerous drug edition. New name, new jingle...and it's a whole new day. So...just think of FEMA as a drug in need of a makeover: Give it a new name, a new logo, a catchy tune, and the association with hurricane Katrina will eventually turn hazy. Two names that have been suggested: National Disaster Coordinating Agency (NDCA), and Federal Unified Bureau of Active Response (FUBAR). That last one is probably just a satirical jab. FUBAR is apparently a military acronym that stands for " fouled up beyond all repair. " As for the first one, they're already good enough at coordinating disasters. Helping us recover from them is really more important in my book. Perhaps they should call the marketing team at Merck for more ideas. To Your Good Health, Jenny Thompson **************************************************** Sources: " High Homocysteine and Low B Vitamins Predict Cognitive Decline in Aging Men: The Veterans Affairs Normative Aging Study " American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vo. 83, No. 3, September 2005, ajcn.org ********************** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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