RESEARCHERS ARE TESTING IF FOUR LIFESTYLE CHANGES can slow, stop, or even reverse Alzheimer’s disease. This essay examines 4 potential quirky tweaks for outsmarting Alzheimer’s.
Can what you eat, how much physical activity you get, your social support, and your diet help prevent (or even reverse) the progression of dementia?
We may get an answer soon. A new clinical trial from Dr. Dean Ornish should provide some answers.
What is Alzheimer’s Disease?
The Mayo Clinic offers this:
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that worsens over time. It is the most common dementia cause — a gradual decline in thinking, memory, and behavior.
With Alzheimer’s disease, the brain can shrink, and cells die.
Complications (such as malnutrition, dehydration, or infection) can lead to death. No treatment cures Alzheimer’s disease.
If you are concerned about thinking skills you observe in a family member or friend, please talk about your concerns and ask about going together to talk with a health care professional.
Alzheimer’s by The Numbers
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common dementia type.
Experts estimate about 5.8 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
This number figure includes 5.6 million 65 and older and about 200,000 under age 65 with younger-onset Alzheimer’s.
By 2060, researchers estimate the number of Alzheimer’s disease will rise to 14 million individuals, with minority populations being affected the most.
- Epidemiologists project cases among Hispanics will increase seven times over current numbers.
- The incidence among African Americans will increase four times over today’s figures.
The New Study — Lifestyle and Alzheimer’s
Researchers are testing whether four lifestyle interventions can slow, stop, or even reverse Alzheimer’s disease.
I am a big fan of Dr. Dean Ornish. He founded the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in California and leads clinical trials. Here he is, speaking on lifestyle and chronic diseases:
“For the last 45 years, I’ve directed research showing that simple lifestyle changes: what we eat, how we respond to stress, how much exercise we get and how much love and social support we have cannot only help prevent, but often reverse the progression of the most common and costly chronic diseases.”
In his previous studies, Dr. Ornish discovered that lifestyle interventions could reverse heart disease in some patients.
Can it do the same for Alzheimer’s disease?
Lifestyle and Alzheimer’s: A New Study
Recognizing that what is good for the heart appears to be good for the brain, the new study focuses on four lifestyle interventions:
- Eating whole foods, plant-based diet: Dr. Ornish recommends fruits, vegetables, soy products, and whole grains. These should be as close to nature as possible, with minimal processing. The foods will be low in fat and sugar.
- Reducing stress: Study participants will use meditation and other yoga-based stress management techniques.
- Getting moderate exercise: According to Dr. Ornish, walking for 30 minutes three times weekly plus strength training qualifies as moderate exercise.
- Increasing social support: Joining support groups or spending quality time with friends and family is encouraged.
Dr. Ornish is joining leading neurologists across the U.S. and in Sweden to test his theory. Recruitment for the study is now closed.
Lifestyle and Alzheimer’s: Study Details
Researchers randomly assigned 51 patients with early Alzheimer’s disease to one of two groups. At baseline, all subjects had state-of-the-art cognitive testing.
Here are the study groups:
- Lifestyle medicine program (20 weeks) group. Researchers will provide all meals (21 per week) to subjects and their spouses or caregivers. Participants will also have stress management training, exercise, and support (three days weekly, four hours per session).
- Control group.
Researchers will re-test the participants after 20 weeks. Then, the second group will cross over to receive the lifestyle medicine program for 20 weeks.
The first group will continue the lifestyle change program for 20 weeks.
After 40 weeks, both groups will be re-tested and compared.
Outsmarting Alzheimer’s – When Will We See Study Results?
Can simple, low-tech, and low-cost interventions change the course of dementia?
Researchers anticipate releasing preliminary results in 2024.
I will be watching closely, as I have a healthy fear of dementia. While it does not run in my family, I prioritize healthspan and quality of life over my longevity.
Thank you for reading “Outsmarting Alzheimer’s.”