Brain Health and Alzheimer’s Disease
Author: Shannon Miller Lifestyle
5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s Disease.
Approximately 15 million Americans help care for those 5 million, including many family members who spend their lives ensuring the health and safety of those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
Protect brain health with this knowledge about Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s is a disease of the brain, under the umbrella of dementia. It is a progressive disease that causes memory loss, irrational behavior, loss of intelligence, and eventually, brain death. For those caring for someone with Alzheimer’s, it is a frustrating disease, as they watch a loved one lose memories of family members or behave in strange ways, and then eventually lose the ability to do basic daily activities.
The National Alzheimer’s Association is a great place to start for tools, research, and information. If you are not sure if a loved one has Alzheimer’s, the website can start you with a list of questions and let you know if it is time to see a doctor. A few years ago, a doctor would diagnose “Alzheimer’s” without much proof. Today, doctors have the tools to diagnose it within 90% accuracy. Once you have a diagnosis, doctors and care professionals, as well as the Alzheimer’s Association, can help with methods to strengthen the brain and help the person live comfortably for a longer period of time.
Recently, the government implemented a new bill to help families with Alzheimer’s. It was passed unanimously in Congress. This bill will help with research and development, and also with basic necessities for people and families affected by Alzheimer’s.
There is more and more evidence that brain health is a major factor in the longevity of brain activity. Even though Alzheimer’s may have a genetic link, people of today and the near future can fight back by keeping their brains healthy. And more research proves that heart health affects brain health. Keeping blood pressure in check and exercising the body improves overall blood flow to the brain, which can help it thrive for a longer period of time.
Dr. Paul Bendheim of Brainsavers.com has a comprehensive program including
- Physical Fitness
- Nutrition
- Brain Exercises
to strengthen the brain and promote longevity, so start there if you feel you need a little help in “stimulating your brain”! Bendheim became noted as a brain research analyst when he worked with the human form of Mad Cow Disease. From that research, he quickly learned that what was previously determined about the brain’s aging was, in fact, completely false.
Doctors used to think that brain aging was inevitable; that as the pituitary gland began to age, so did the the human brain, and that the end result was some sort of senile behavior or dementia. Bendheim and others discovered in their research that in fact, the brain is more like our body muscles. When you work them in repetitive motions, they remember the motions and become stronger. Aha!
When Bendheim started working with people at the beginning stages of memory loss, he found out that he could actually strengthen their memories with short memory exercises. The hippocampus, the area of the brain responsible for memory storage, gets stronger as it repeats and stores certain memories.
He also found that the nutrients we put in to our body (or lack thereof) have an enormous impact on the brain’s health and activity. The more natural, whole ingredients (what he calls “from the Bible” ingredients) we feed ourselves, the stronger our brain gets. The more refined and processed products (think modern shelf products) we consume, the weaker the brain gets. His diet is most closely related to the Mediterranean Diet, which consists of vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats.
He also has a pyramid of exercise, starting with basic stamina-building cardio exercises and working upward from there. The formula is very simple to follow, and it makes sense. The blood flow from exercise, as well as the positive hormones that are released, impact the brain in a positive way. Working with different muscle groups causes the brain to work in different ways.
Finally, the book comes with extensive brain exercises. You can see from testimonials, that from doing these exercises, people are able to actually build brain connections and save their brains from aging…even making their brains stronger!
We cannot deny ourselves this incredible opportunity to age with vitality. By following a healthy lifestyle and maintaining brain health, we can actually live with our memories and create more for a more vibrant life as we age. Find Dr. Bendheim’s book, The Brain Training Revolution, at amazon or any book retailer.