Ronald Reagan died of a tragic disease called Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s progressively damages brain cells leading to impaired memory, thinking and behavior. A tragic, costly and growing disease among our elderly, Alzheimer’s is now affecting younger people in their 30s, 40s and 50s. It is time to think about how to prevent and mitigate Alzheimer’s.

 In my book Never Be Sick Again, I related how Dr. Morton Walker questioned members of a long-lived native population about dementia. These healthy people typically lived well into their hundreds; yet they had no knowledge of dementia. They had never experienced anything like dementia and, therefore, did not have a word in their language to describe it. These people lived nearly half a century longer than we do, yet we are told that Alzheimer’s is a disease of aging and the price we must pay for living so long.

 Alzheimer’s is no different than other chronic diseases. It is something we have created with our modern diets and lifestyles. Since we created it, we can uncreate it. Like any so-called disease, Alzheimer’s is nothing more than malfunctioning cells. The questions to ask are these: Why are these brain cells malfunctioning, and what can be done to prevent and reverse it? Here are some of the factors to consider:

 Recent research, including a study in a 2004 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has determined that Alzheimer’s results from free radical activity in the brain, which produces “a neurodegenerative cascade that leads to clinical disease.” Free radicals play a role in virtually every disease. They damage DNA and cellular machinery, causing cellular malfunction. So, where are these free radicals coming from? Alzheimer’s is characterized by the formation of beta-amyloid peptides around brain cells. Beta-amyloid is the protein fragment considered by many experts to be the prime suspect triggering nerve cell degeneration in Alzheimer's patients. Research shows that when beta-amyloid peptides accumulate, they cause high levels of destructive free-radical activity.

 If beta-amyloid peptide accumulation creates damaging free radicals, it would be useful to understand how this comes about so we can prevent it. A study in the May 2003 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences offers one explanation that has to do with the deadly metabolic poison known as sugar. Sugar causes every imaginable disease, including Alzheimer’s. Eating sugar increases blood sugar levels, causing an increase in blood insulin. The enzyme insulysin degrades insulin so as to restore normal insulin levels. However, this same enzyme also degrades beta-amyloid peptides in the brain. The researchers believe that regular sugar consumption creates chronically high insulin levels. High insulin uses up too much of the available insulysin capacity, thereby preventing the normal degradation of amyloid peptides. This leads to an accumulation of beta-amyloid peptides in the brain—resulting in Alzheimer’s. President Reagan was well known for his high consumption of sugar in the form of jellybeans. There is even another mechanism at work. The body’s reaction to high blood sugar results in low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), and hypoglycemia makes the brain substantially more susceptible to damage from toxins.

 High homocysteine levels generate brain-damaging free radicals. According to a study in a February 2002 New England Journal of Medicine, people with high levels of homocysteine have double the risk of Alzheimer’s compared to those with normal homocysteine. People who are deficient in vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid often develop high homocysteine. In a March 1997 study in the Journal of Gerontology and Biological Sciences, Alzheimer’s patients were found to be deficient in both vitamin B12 and folate when compared to age-matched controls. In fact, supplemental B12 has been shown to completely reverse memory loss in some older people. About 15 percent of the population has a gene that puts them at high risk for dementia when deficient in B12. Supplementation with B12 will both prevent and reverse this dementia. B vitamins are critical to controlling homocysteine and B vitamins are depleted by eating sugar, the major component of jellybeans.

 Magnesium deficiency plays a vital role in the development of neurological diseases. This is because magnesium deficiency not only encourages the production of free radicals; it also magnifies the extent of the damage. Low magnesium levels have been shown to double the amount of free radical activity in the body. Most Americans are deficient in magnesium and eating sugar, the major component of jellybeans, depletes magnesium.

 Food additives in the form of flavor enhancers such as MSG, artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, artificial colors, and artificial flavors all damage brain cells and contribute to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. These dangerous neurotoxins are found in all manner of processed foods including breakfast cereals, sodas and jelly beans.

 Another apparent contributor to Alzheimer’s is aluminum. A study by the University of California focused on a region in northwestern Italy that is known to have a high concentration of aluminum in its drinking water. In fact, some of this water contains six times the maximum amount of aluminum recommended by most environmental agencies. The study concluded that this region of Italy had an above average death rate from Alzheimer’s, and that even minute amounts of aluminum accelerate cellular death.

 Almost all municipal water supplies in the United States contain aluminum, not to mention toothpaste tubes, aluminum cookware, and food and beverages packaged in aluminum including fruit juices, beer and sodas. Adding fluoride to our drinking water and toothpaste compounds the problem. Fluoride, a dangerous toxin in its own right, is known to enhance the absorption of aluminum by reacting with it to form aluminum fluoride, a powerful neurotoxin that is easily transported into the brain. Combining aluminum, fluoride and aspartame in a soda creates an enormously powerful mixture of brain toxins. Unfortunately, numerous processed foods including soups, breakfast cereals and jellybeans are made using tap water containing aluminum fluoride.

 Mercury produces free radicals and poses a particular risk. A study in the April 2001 issue of the British journal NeuroReport stated: "Seven of the characteristic markers that we look for to distinguish Alzheimer's disease can be produced in normal brain tissues...by the addition of extremely low levels of mercury.” Alzheimer’s patients are known to have higher than average mercury levels, and the American people have 557 tons of mercury in their dental fillings! Even the mercury contained in vaccines contributes; having a flu shot five years in a row will increase your risk of Alzheimer’s by 1000 percent.

 High cholesterol is a risk factor. High cholesterol increases the level of certain proteins that are abnormally processed by people with Alzheimer’s. This sets off a chain reaction resulting in forming beta-amyloid peptides. Sugar consumption increases cholesterol.

 Another risk factor for Alzheimer’s is the now highly discredited hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for women. A May 2003 Journal of the American Medical Association reported that HRT doubles the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. “No one anticipated this outcome,” said Dr. Marilyn Albert, a professor of neurobiology at Johns Hopkins. This news was just the latest from a series of studies finding that the supposed benefits of HRT do not exist and that HRT increases the risk of serious diseases—including those it was supposed to prevent! Because of HRT, millions of women are at risk for everything from cancer to heart disease to Alzheimer’s (another of modern medicine’s epic blunders).

 Other sources of brain-damaging free radicals include fluoride in toothpaste, recreational drugs such as marijuana, pesticides and herbicides, all of which are capable of doing permanent brain damage. As you can see, much is known about the risk factors that contribute to Alzheimer’s. However, we also know a lot about how certain substances can slow its progression and improve function in patients. Knowing what we know now, we can prevent almost all cases of Alzheimer’s as well as slowing and even reversing its development in those already afflicted. All that is necessary is to put this knowledge to work.

 Since Alzheimer’s results from free radical damage to the brain, the need to supply the body with antioxidant nutrients such as vitamins C and E is obvious. There is overwhelming evidence that antioxidants are highly protective in both prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s. In a recent animal experiment vitamin E was found to prevent beta-amyloid peptides from killing brain cells.

 To prevent or mitigate Alzheimer’s, start your own program now. Begin with a good diet. First, get the Big Four out of your life: sugar, white flour, processed oils and milk. These products are huge contributors to our epidemic of chronic and degenerative disease. Eat at least nine half-cup servings of fresh, organic fruit and vegetables every day. Avoid all processed and fast foods. Avoid coffee, carbonated drinks, snack foods, and french fries. Eliminate supermarket oils from your kitchen. Supplement with omega-3 fats; people with the highest intake of fish oil have 70 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s.

 Beyond eating right, supplementing with high quality Beyond Health-approved nutrients is essential. Vitamins A, C, D, E, K, carotenes, quercitin, lipoic acid, CoQ10, N-acetyl-L-cysteine, acetyl-L-carnitine, phosphatidylserine, glycerophosphocholine, plus magnesium and manganese are all highly protective. The latest research points to quercitin as a potent protector of brain cells. Vitamin B complex including B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12 and folic acid is a must; new research shows that people with the highest intake of B3 have 80 percent lower risk. Adding the herb ginkgo biloba to the above is also recommended. Recent studies have shown ginkgo to be just as effective as prescription drugs in treating Alzheimer’s and, of course, without the side effects. All this may sound like a lot, but many of these nutrients come together in one pill. Consult with Beyond Health to get what you need.

 Exercising your brain is important as well. If you don’t use it, you lose it. Read about new things, do crossword puzzles, play chess, learn new skills, and keep socially engaged. Regular saunas are helpful to reduce toxic load. Regular exercise has been found to be good for brain function. Exercise for at least 30 minutes daily and definitely include rebounding in your regimen. Everyone needs to be rebounding!

 We can and must stop this unnecessary epidemic of Alzheimer’s. To prevent and arrest Alzheimer’s, one of the most important things anyone can do is stop eating sugar—an incredibly dangerous poison. Then get the mercury, fluoride, aluminum and all processed foods and oils out of your life. The combination of good food and supplemental omega-3 fats, B vitamins, magnesium and vitamins C and E will give you enormous protection from this dreaded and debilitating disease. Call Beyond Health to get on a good program.

 Raymond Francis, N.D. is an M.I.T.-trained scientist, a registered nutrition consultant, author of Never Be Sick Again, host of the Beyond Health Show and an internationally recognized leader in the emerging field of optimal health maintenance.

 
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