Four simple steps for avoiding Alzheimer’s disease

Three stages of coffee preparation

By Marc S. Micozzi, M.D., Ph.D.

In the first-ever comprehensive analysis on Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) risk factors, researchers found four dietary factors offer strong protection against AD: coffee, folate, vitamin C, and vitamin E. Let’s go through them one at a time to review the main points:

  1. Coffee

Many studies show drinking three to four cups of coffee per day benefits the brain. Coffee comes from a natural plant that contains many biologically active, beneficial constituents that may act by protecting and supporting brain cells directly. These constituents also support healthy blood circulation to the brain.

  1. Folate

Folate is the key B vitamin that reduces homocysteine, the real risk factor behind cardiovascular and heart disease. Plus, as I explained on Tuesday, high homocysteine is also a major culprit in AD. Unfortunately, many people still remain deficient in folate and all the B vitamins. So, as I always recommend, make sure to take a high-quality B complex vitamin daily.

  1. Vitamin C

Vitamin C is one of nature’s prime anti-oxidants. It’s so important, all animals except humans and guinea pigs make their own. We must get vitamin C from foods and/or dietary supplements. Fortunately, many fruits and vegetables contain lots of vitamin C. But you should also supplement with this essential nutrient daily to help protect against AD.

  1. Vitamin E

Thank goodness someone is finally waking up to the power of vitamin E for brain health. Especially when it comes to AD. Last year, I reported on a study that compared vitamin E to a new AD drug in men and women with dementia. The patients who took vitamin E demonstrated dramatic improvements. Patients who took only the drug showed no improvements. And the patients who took both vitamin E and drug experienced no improvements.

How do you explain that last outcome?

Well, it appears drug actually cancels out the benefits of the vitamin.

Of course, that study followed men and women who already had dementia. Imagine what this potent vitamin can do for someone like you who just wants to prevent brain aging.

You also want to stay active and maintain a healthy weight to stave off dementia as you get older. Eating protein with every meal will also help maintain muscle mass, skeletal health and vitality, all of which are associated with longevity.

Plus, you should take dandelion extract and aspal, the South African herb, daily to help stay physically strong as well. You can find these ingredients in some of the higher quality dietary supplements. You can even find them in water-soluble powders that you can add to water or another beverage. Look for aspal and dandelion together in the same product(s) and make sure you get the right doses of both every day

Big pharma runs around trying to develop new drugs based on flawed, failed theories about what causes AD. In the meantime, you can take your health into your own hands with these simple steps to prevent AD.

I’ll give you a full report on how to naturally prevent AD (as well as the latest, research-based dosages of all the nutrients I mentioned above) in the December issue of my Insiders’ Cures newsletter. So if you’re not yet a subscriber, now is the perfect time to get started.

Source:

“Meta-analysis of modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease,” J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry (www.jnnp.bmj.com) 8/20/2015

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Marc S. Micozzi, M.D., Ph.D. was the founding editor-in-chief of the first US journal in Complementary and Alternative Medicine and organized and edited the first US textbook in the field, Fundamentals of Complementary & Integrative Medicine in 1996. He has published nearly 300 articles in medical literature and is the author or editor of over 25 books. Dr. Micozzi served as Senior Investigator of cancer prevention at the National Cancer Institute, where he published the original research on diet, nutrition, and chronic disease. He continued this line of research as the Associate Director of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and Director of the National Museum of Health and Medicine.

In recent years, Dr. Micozzi has served as the Founding Director of the Policy Institute for Integrative Medicine in Bethesda, MD, working to educate policy makers, the health professions, and the general public about the opportunities for integrative medicine and the need for clean, clear science within our modern medical establishment. Dr. Micozzi writes a monthly newsletter called Insiders’ Cures as well as a free e-letter called The Daily Dispatch.