Chances are in this day and age, you know someone who has been affected by Alzheimer’s or some type of dementia. None of us want to think about spending our “golden years” in cognitive decline, but it is estimated that three times more people will suffer from Alzheimer’s by 2050. There are natural solutions you can employ now to reduce your chances by 60% of being one of these however or at least delay it, so get proactive and start practicing some of these do’s and don’ts now.

DO:

• Eat low calorie foods high in nutrients. Adding lots of bright colored veggies and fruits into your diet will meet this criteria and give you added antioxidant power to fight off free radical damage. A great way to get lots of nutrition without calories is with AFA bluegreen algae. Be particularly sure you are getting magnesium, Vitamin D, folate, and vitamin B12 in your diet.

• Try a gingko biloba supplement as Traditional Chinese Medicine has used this herb for thousands of years and research has shown it can help increase blood flow to the brain making it as effective as certain drugs used for the early stages of Alzheimer’s. You can get ginkgo along with the extra nutrition from AFA bluegreen algae and other ingredients found to promote mental clarity such as Lion’s Mane mushroom, bee pollen, wheatgrass juice, and noni in this supplement.

• Buy organic foods whenever possible as pesticides such as glyphosate found in non-organic foods and GMO foods depletes the minerals we need and kills off our friendly gut bacteria. For extra insurance to supporting your gut bacteria, eat foods with live active probiotic cultures such as yogurt and kefir or consider a high quality probiotic supplement such as acidophilus, bifidus and a full-spectrum probiotic. You may not realize that the probiotics in your gut actually have an effect on your brain, but specific probiotics in the gut have actually been identified as being able to perform functions that affect regulation of neurotransmitters in the brain and that affect the corticosterone hormone which is responsible for reducing anxiety and depression type behaviors.

• Increase your intake of Coenzyme Q10 and avoid using statins if you can for lowering cholesterol since they zap the coenzyme Q10 in your brain preventing access for essential fatty acids and fat soluble antioxidants. I like to get some extra CoQ10 with this supplement  that provides ubiquinol (the active and bioavailable form of Coenzyme Q10), as well as reishi and oyster mushrooms, polyphenols from olives, and wild bluegreen algae.

• Stop Smoking. You know there are lots of health reasons to stop smoking, but you may not have known it can increase your risk of getting dementia. Just one more reason to get serious about quitting.

• Throw out the junk food and other foods loaded with trans fats such as fried foods. Read labels on foods such as margarine, cookies, crackers and pasta and look for words such as partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

• Make sure you get healthy fats in your diet particularly monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids. These are the types of fat the brain needs to function properly and include foods such as fatty fish like salmon, walnuts, olive oil, avocados, flax seeds, chia seeds, and dark-green leafy vegetables.

DON’T:

• Don’t eat a lot of sugary foods

• Don’t expose yourself to aluminum such as in antiperspirants, cooking utensils, foil or vaccinations.

• Don’t be a couch potato. Research has shown that exercise and staying active lowers the risk of Alzheimer’s.

• Don’t expose yourself to mercury in dental fillings. Instead see your dentist to see about replacing old fillings.

• Don’t let your brain become stagnant. Take up activities and hobbies that allow you to learn new things.

• Avoid drugs such as used for pain relief, inducing sleep, antihistamines, incontinence medications, and some antidepressants that are anticholinergics.

• Avoid hospital stays that include surgery or intensive care as there is research indicating that the use of general anesthesia can increase risks of Alzheimer’s by 35%.

There are of course other risk factors that determine whether you will get some type of dementia or Alzheimer’s, but instead of worrying about it these tips give you a way to help reduce your risk and empower you to do something about it other than fret. Many of these suggestions also lead to other health benefits such as for your brain and heart so you have nothing to lose by giving them a try and you just might help yourself to stay sharp and functioning well in your senior years.

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Sources:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/57e1a42fe4b05d3737be4fd9?timestamp=1474482493851
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/10/17/alzheimers-zinc-deficiency.aspx?e_cid=20131017Z1_DNL_art_1&utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art1&utm_campaign=20131017Z1
http://www.naturalnews.com/043280_lifestyle_behaviors_dementia_risk_allopathic_drugs.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/043257_dementia_epidemic_neurodegenerative_disease_cognitive_decline.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/039172_dementia_alzheimers_foods.html
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S089158491300350X
http://www.naturalnews.com/043482_junk_food_memory_loss_cognitive_impairment.html\