DEFEATING DISEASE: TROUBLE ON THE BRAIN
Any dementia-causing neurological condition can slowly rob you of things you take for granted-like language, memory, judgment, even your ability to make sense of what you see or where you are. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia and perhaps the deadliest. The estimated four million American adults who have it suffer any combination of those cognitive losses, usually starting off with seemingly insignificant memory lapses.
There are genes that predispose you to Alzheimer’s. A family history of any kind of dementia puts you at higher risk. Other risk factors include a history of depression, alcohol abuse, or thyroid disease. Here are some ways to bolster your odds against this ailment.
Get smart. An idle mind is Alzheimer’s playground. “Well-educated people seem to show signs of Alzheimer’s less often,” says Linda Hershey, M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurology at the State University of New York at Buffalo and chief of neurology at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, also in Buffalo. “Education has a protective effect.”
But even if you dropped out of school, it’s not too late to build up your brain against Alzheimer’s. Dedication to mind-challenging hobbies like music, cards, or drawing will help, according to the Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia at the University of California, Irvine, College of Medicine. The only requirement is an active mind.
Relieve brain pain. A toxic protein in Alzheimer’s patients’ brains actually stimulates inflammatory reactions that contribute to cell loss. “You could possibly slow that process by taking an anti-inflammatory pain remedy like ibuprofen,” Dr. Hershey says. “Just like this drug helps reduce inflammation in your joints, it helps the same way in your brain.” In fact, studies have shown that any of the non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (that is, aspirin, ibuprofen, and the like) help. But Dr. Hershey cautions that you should ask your physician before taking these drugs, as they can cause serious side effects.
Take vitamin E. When Columbia University researchers looked at Alzheimer’s sufferers, they found that those who took vitamin E in the middle stages took about a year longer before requiring institutionalization. That doesn’t mean that vitamin E can prevent Alzheimer’s. Also, this study’s dosage was much higher than what most doctors would recommend. In fact, taking high doses of vitamin E has the potential to cause neuropathy, according to Dr. Hershey.
“Vitamin E presumably works because it’s an antioxidant and, therefore, the enemy of free radicals that can damage brain cells in people with Alzheimer’s,” Dr. Hershey says. “A free-radical scavenger like vitamin E can slow down the process.” And so can other antioxidants, research indicates, including ginkgo and vitamin Ñ. But again, before you add a vitamin E supplement to your diet, Dr. Hershey advises that you speak with your doctor.
Watch your head. Trauma, especially combined with a predisposing gene, increases your risk for Alzheimer’s. It can happen from one severe head injury or various blows to the noggin over the years. “If you have the gene, head trauma can make the symptoms show up earlier,” Dr. Hershey says.
Check the pressure. High blood pressure is usually associated with other kinds of dementia, but at least one study at the University of Illinois has found a hypertension-Alzheimer’s link. Fifteen years after having their blood pressure tracked at age 70, those in the study group who developed Alzheimer’s turned out to be those with higher blood pressure readings.
*92/36/5*
