Memory Loss and Nutrition

I wasn't quite sure which forum to place my latest article... but since we often think of memory loss when we think of aging- I though this would work Robin

This is taken from my blog at http://robinthomas.biz   If you are ever interested in receiving my weekly newsletter, you may do so at the same link.  I often have a similar topic, but add other interesting tidbits and do my very best to keep it concise and informative.  I'd love to get to know my readers better this way.

Well, here is my article:

What is the role of nutrition in the prevention or improvement of age-related memory loss cognition?

Did you realize that our memory becomes challenged as early as in our mid-twenties?  We usually don't notice anything until we become stressed, or start forgetting simple things at middle age.  Everyone can identify with entering a room and forgetting what errand we meant to do there- or misplacing our car keys.  This is not mark the onset of a serious disease, like like Alzheimer’s, but due to normal, age-related changes in the brain.

That is not to say that memory loss is inevitable as we age.  New evidence suggests that the brain functions somewhat like a muscle; the more you use it, the stronger it gets.  Health problems are also a factor in brain deterioration. Besides Alzheimer’s, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, depression, insomnia and stress can adversely affect memory.

Memory may be harmed by through metabolic disease long before the onset of diabetes. For people with other health risks that go along with obesity, such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, the risk of developing severe memory loss (dementia) is six times greater than people without these conditions. A healthy cardiovascular system helps retain a healthy brain.  Anything that slows down blood flow to the brain affects our brain function, including memory.

I'm often asked what supplements we should be taking to help offset  memory loss.  Before deciding to take any supplements at all it is first important to consider it's quality and safety.  Few supplements have undergone the strict safety and efficacy testing that ensure the product even has what the label indicates.  Read Here for more information on safety and efficiency of supplements. 

Antioxidants: the neuroprotectors

Oxidative stress has been shown to contribute to many aspects of aging and chronic degenerative conditions  including both neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disease. Interesting studies have shown that Alzheimer sufferers have lower levels of antioxidants in their cerebrospinal fluid than do healthy elderly adults.  And a study by DM Dreon and SJ Peroutkal on the Apo E4 carrier gene for Alzheimers demonstrates that people carrying this gene are more likely to respond even more favorably to antioxidant therapy than non-carriers.  Even those of us who are not affected by severe memory loss undergo oxidative stress daily. 

 Antioxidants neutralize the free radical ions that cause oxidative stress, protecting our body's tissues from damage by these ions.  A full spectrum of antioxidants includes Vitamins A, C, E, beta-carotene, selenium, and polyphenols which are all contained in a well balanced diet. 

Good foods to add to your diet:

Cruciferous vegetables: Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, and bok choy.

Leafy green vegetables: spinach, collard and mustard greens, kale and Swiss chard.

Foods containing anthocyanin: Berries (all varieties), cherries, black currents, eggplant, red, black, and purple grapes, plums, rhubarb, red onion, red apples, red/purple cabbage, and red beets.

Foods containing quercetin: Onions (red, yellow, white), kale, leeks, cherry tomato, broccoli, blueberries, black currants, elderberries, apricots, apple with skin (Red Delicious), and red, purple, and black grapes.

Unfortunately today many of our "fresh foods" have been grown on depleted soil before being shipped long distances while still not ripe, significantly reducing their nutritional value.  It is always best to purchase food grown both locally and organically, and also to augment your diet with a high quality, broad spectrum multivitamin such as the USANA Essentials.

B Vitamins and Folic Acid: memory nutrients

Deficiencies in the B Vitamins ( B12, B6, folate, and thiamine) have long been recognized as contributors to cognitive decline, and are frequently treated first when a patient is evaluated for a memory disorder.  Folic acid (also known as folate) seems to have a direct effect on memory. A study conducted at Tufts University in Boston followed about 320 men for three years. Those who had high blood levels of homocysteine showed memory decline, but if the men ate foods rich in folic acid (folic acid directly lowers homocysteine levels), their memories were protected. A study on B vitamins in women with high risk of cardiovascular disease preserved cognition in women who had a low base-line of vit D originally. Some of the best foods for folic acid include fortified whole-grain breakfast cereals, lentils, black-eyed peas, soybeans, spinach, green peas, artichokes, broccoli, wheat germ, beets and oranges.

Eating fish seems to help too!

A study conducted by researchers at the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago followed more than 3,000 men and women for six years to see how diet affected memory. People who ate fish at least once a week had a 10 percent slower decline compared with those who did not eat fish, a difference that gave them the memory and thinking ability of a person three years younger. Don't like fish?  Worried about mercury contamination?  Consider USANA's BiOmega for a full day's worth of your Omega-3's.

Live Well!

Robin

Other sites you may find interesting:

Mayo clinic:  7 tips to improve your memory

How Do You Know Your Supplements Are Safe and Effective?

A Smart Approach to Heart Health

S0 What Causes Oxidative Stress Anyway?

How to Reduce Oxidative Stress in Our Lives

References:

1) Bennett S, Grant MM, Aldred S.  J Alzheimers Dis. 2009;17(2):245-57. Oxidative stress in vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease: a common
pathology. School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.

2) Dickinson BC, Chang CJ.  Nat Chem Biol. 2011 Jul 18;7(8):504-11. doi: 10.1038/nchembio.607. Chemistry and biology of reactive oxygen species in signaling or stress responses. Department of Chemistry, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA.

3)Dreon DM, Peroutkal SJ. Med Hypotheses. 2001 Mar;56(3):357-9.Medical utility of apoe allele determination in assessing the need for
antioxidant therapy.Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA.

4) Gemma C, Vila J, Bachstetter A, Bickford PC. Oxidative Stress and the Aging Brain: From Theory to Prevention. In: Riddle DR, editor. Brain Aging: Models, Methods, and Mechanisms. Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press; 2007. Chapter 15. Frontiers in Neuroscience.

5)  Han X, Rozen S, Boyle SH, Hellegers C, Cheng H, Burke JR, Welsh-Bohmer KA, Doraiswamy PM, Kaddurah-Daouk R. PLoS One. 2011;6(7):e21643. Epub 2011 Jul 11. Metabolomics in early Alzheimer's disease: identification of altered plasma sphingolipidome using shotgun lipidomics. Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, Orlando, Florida, United States of America.

6) Kang JH, Cook N, Manson J, Buring JE, Albert CM, Grodstein F.Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Dec;88(6):1602-10.A trial of B vitamins and cognitive function among women at high risk of cardiovascular disease.Channing Laboratory, Boston, MA 02115, USA.

6)  Malouf M, Grimley EJ, Areosa SA Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003;(4):CD004514. Folic acid with or without vitamin B12 for cognition and dementia.Dept. of Clinical Geratology, Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group, Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock Road, Oxford, UK, OX2 6HE.

7) Mandel SA, Amit T, Weinreb O, Youdim MB. J Alzheimers Dis. 2011 Jan 1;25(2):187-208.Understanding the broad-spectrum neuroprotective action profile of green tea polyphenols in aging and neurodegenerative diseases. Eve Topf Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Research and Department of
Molecular Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Technion, Haifa, Israel.

8)  Meydani M.  Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2001 Apr;928:226-35.  Nutrition interventions in aging and age-associated disease.  Vascular Biology Program, Jean Mayer USDA-Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts 02155, USA.

9) Salerno-Kennedy R, Cashman KD.Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2005 Mar;75(2):83-95.Relationship between dementia and nutrition-related factors and disorders: anoverview. Department of Food and Nutritional Science, University College, Cork, Ireland.

10) Tangney CC, Kwasny MJ, Li H, Wilson RS, Evans DA, Morris MC. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011 Mar;93(3):601-7. Epub 2010 Dec 22.Adherence to a Mediterranean-type dietary pattern and cognitive decline in a community population. Department of Clinical Nutrition, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL,USA.

11) Tucker KL, Qiao N, Scott T, Rosenberg I, Spiro A 3rd. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Sep;82(3):627-35. High homocysteine and low B vitamins predict cognitive decline in aging men: the Veterans Affairs Normative Aging Study. Jean Mayer US Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging
at Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111, USA.