Dr. Barry Sears
President of Zone Labs |
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Mind Matters
How Do I Reduce My Chances of Getting
Alzheimer's?
CBN.com –
The mind is the next frontier for medical science. Your
brain contains thousands of unexplained mysteries. Researchers
remain humbled by its complexities as they try to pinpoint the
exact areas of the brain responsible for how you speak, feel love,
learn to hate, and express creativity. Studies show that you have
the potential to improve your brain function simply by giving
your brain what it wants and avoiding the things it hates.
Previous population studies have pointed to the fact that people
who live in countries where fish consumption is very high (such
as Japan) have the lowest rates of depression in the world. Couple
this with the fact that the amount of fish oil consumption in
the American diet has been steadily decreasing over the past century,
and you should be able to figure out why our rates of neurological
disease such as depression, attention deficit disorder, and Alzheimer’s
disease are skyrocketing. The average American’s dietary
intakes of DHA (which is needed to maintain brain function) and
EPA (which is necessary for improved blood flow and decreased
inflammation) are now at dangerously low levels compared with
what they were early in the twentieth century.
Alzheimer's disease is highly associated with the development
of amyloid plaques in the brain, similar in many ways to the plaques
that clog artery walls and eventually lead to heart attacks. In
fact, people who have a genetic susceptibility to heart attacks
(a variation in the Apo E protein) also have a far higher risk
of developing Alzheimer's. Thus, a strategy to prevent both heart
disease and Alzheimer's seems to make sense. In fact, Hippocrates
stated this some 2,500 years ago when he said, "whatever
is good for the heart, is probably good for the brain".
Since reducing inflammation is good for the heart (remember that
aspirin is still the best drug to prevent heart attacks), then
reducing inflammation should also be good for the mind (especially
Alzheimer's). Perhaps, not surprisingly, people who are long-term
users of anti-inflammatory drugs have a much lower incidence of
Alzheimer's disease than the general population.
Is there an appropriate strategy to reduce the likelihood of
developing Alzheimer's? Population studies have shown that people
more than 85 years old who eat fish have a 40 percent smaller
risk of developing Alzheimer's. Other research has shown that
the brains of Alzheimer's patients have 30 percent less DHA than
the brains of healthy individuals. In data from the landmark Framingham
Heart Study, those patients who had lower levels of long-chain
Omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had a 67 percent greater likelihood
of developing Alzheimer's. In fact, supplementation with DHA seems
to improve the cognitive function of Alzheimer's patients, according
to one intervention study. More ominous is that those individuals
who consume the most Omega-6 fatty acids have a 250% increase
in the development of Alzheimer's. Remember it is the over-consumption
of Omega-6 fatty acids (such as those found in common vegetable
oils) that leads to an increase in arachidonic acid formation
that leads to the increase of inflammation.
A blood test called the AA/EPA ratio measures the amount of Omega
3 compared to Omega 6 in one’s blood as the benchmark for
judging inflammation in the body. AA, or Arachidonic acid, is
an Omega 6 fat that causes a pro-inflammatory hormonal response,
while EPA, or Eicosapentaenoic acid, is an Omega 3 fat that causes
an anti-inflammatory hormonal response. By balancing this AA/EPA
level in the blood, one will be able to control inflammation.
The ideal marker for wellness is an AA/EPA ratio of 1.5.
Therefore, we can theorize that too much inflammation increases
your risk of Alzheimer's. This hypothesis is confirmed by recent
studies that have looked at the AA/EPA ratio in Alzheimer's patients
and age-matched controls.
The fact that Alzheimer's patients have double the AA/EPA ratio
suggests that they have increased brain inflammation. In fact,
Alzheimer's disease is now being considered primarily an inflammatory
condition.
Excerpted from The Omega RX Zone: The Miracle of the New
High-Dose Fish Oil by Dr. Barry Sears. Copyright© by Dr. Barry Sears.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and
Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose,
treat, cure, or prevent any disease. As with any natural product,
individual results will vary.
For more information about Dr. Barry Sears, his incredible fish
oil supplements, or the popular Zone Diet, please visit www.zoneliving.com.
If you purchase any Zone Labs, Inc. products, part of the
proceeds support CBN ministries.
Dr. Barry Sears is a leader in the field of
dietary control of hormonal response. A former research scientist
at the Boston University School of Medicine and the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, Dr. Sears has dedicated his efforts over
the past 25 years to the study of lipids and their inflammatory
role in the development of chronic disease. He holds 13 U.S. patents
in the areas of intravenous drug delivery systems and hormonal
regulation for the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
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