Herbs and Diet in Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease occurs due to degeneration of some types of Neural cells in the Brain.

While this degeneration is progressive and almost irreversible, there are certain medicines, some of them herbal, which retard the speed of degeneration and so are worth considering in patients who are in the initial stages of Alzheimer's disease.

Some of the symptoms seen in the earlier stages of this disorder are:

Increasing forgetfulness
Inability to concentrate
Putting things where they don't belong
Change in sleep patterns
Difficulty with daily tasks or more complicated problem solving
Forgetting dates or how to get to familiar destinations
Changes in mood or behavior
Forgetting common words or using the wrong words
Loss of interest in people, things, or activities
Doing things that don't seem to make sense

Some Herbal remedies which are known to be of use in Alzheimer’s disease are:

Ginkgo biloba is a most promising herbal remedy for Alzheimer's.
Ginkgo is a tree of Chinese origin, which lives for hundreds of years.
Extracts of its leaves are used for medicinal purposes, as they have shown to improve blood flow (including microcirculation in small capillaries) to most tissues and organs, including the Brain, and protect against oxidative cell damage from free radicals.

Kelp
Kelp is a sea vegetable, beneficial for sensory nerves, the brain, spinal tissues and membranes.

Butcher's Broom
Butcher's Broom has anti-inflammatory properties and improves the structure of veins. It slows down the inflammatory damage that occurs in Brain cells in Alzheimer's.

Club Moss
Club moss ( Lycopodium clavatum ) contains Huperzine A, a compound which improves memory, cognitive function, and behavioral factors in Alzheimer's patients and has no significant side effects.

Periwinkle
Periwinkle, or Vinca rosea, is a garden plant in tropical countries. It contains a compound called Vinpocetine, which enhances brain circulation and oxygen utilization and has other neuroprotective and anti-ischemic effects.

Brahmi
Brahmi, or Bacopa monnieri is a weed-like plant which grows near water bodies in some tropical countries. It enhances nerve impulse transmission and strengthens memory and cognition and has been used in India since olden times, to treat disorders of the Nervous System.

Ginseng
Ginseng, another herb of Chinese origin, has also shown to improve memory of Alzheimer patients. It gives very good results when combined with Ginkgo biloba.

Besides these, there are many other plants which help improve Brain function and newer ones are being added to the list almost every month.
Hopefully, we should soon be able to find a satisfactory plant-based cure for Alzheimer's disease in the near future.

Diet and Alzheimer's Disease.
Alzheimer's Disease is the result of a degeneration of certain Nerve Cells in the Brain.
There are some foods which are seen to enhance this degeneration and others which retard it.
We should, therefore, be aware of which foods should be avoided and which eaten, by a patient of this disorder.

Some Dietary Do's:

Fine movements, such as holding a fork and spoon become progressively difficult over months and years, in an Alzheimer patient. So food should be chosen so that it can be eaten with relative ease, needing as few complex manoeuvres as possible.
Foods rich in Vitamins B12, C, D and E, folic acid and beta-carotene should be eaten liberally, as often as one's diet would allow.
This means green leafy vegetables and fresh fruits should be eaten preferentially.
Omega-3 fatty acids are known to protect the Brain, so fish such as mackerel, salmon, trout and sardines and oils such a Olive oil are beneficial.

The metal Aluminium has been found in degenerative plaques in the Brain in a significant number of Alzheimer's patients.
Absorption of Aluminium from the gut is reduced by Silicon, which is found in foods like cabbage, lettuce, dark green leafy vegetables, onions and milk. Kelp and alfalfa also contain a lot of silicon.

Potatoes, Spinach, offal, soya bean are also good for these patients.


Some Dietary Don'ts:

Many antacid tablets and liquids contain Aluminium hydroxide as their chief constituent. So one should not take antacids unless absolutely necessary and should try and choose one without Aluminium hydroxide.
The food additive E541, which is basically sodium aluminium phosphate, is a raising agent which is often used in packed cakes and biscuits.
Excess alcohol consumption is known to aggravate Alzheimer's disease.

It would be wise to keep this small essay in mind, always, as one grows older and (hopefully) wiser, so that we avoid falling prey to this dreadful disease!

Blog to be continued..... 16.09.2008
joshi@herbaltradition.com
drjoshi@farawaysister.com