Healthy by Nature radio show: Before I tell you about this week, I want to make sure that you heard last week’s crucially important show. When I scheduled Dr. Kate months ago, neither of us realized that it was for Easter weekend. If you weren’t able to hear that show, please read about it in the “Last Week” section below and go to the archive for the life-saving information she offered.

This week Constantine Kotsanis, MD will answer your health questions, so please make a note of the show number, 1-800-281-8255. Later in the program, cancer survivor and activist, Annie Brandt, will tell us about an innovative treatment for cancer and about a national event coming this month that offers public sessions. Click here to find podcasts, show archives and how to listen nationwide.
 
Media asleep at the switch?
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a heartbreaking destroyer of families. Currently, one in three seniors may have the quality of their later years degraded by dementia and worse yet, the problem is growing. As already the most expensive disease and the 6th leading cause of death in the US, AD is certainly top of mind. [Geesh, there I go again with the accidental puns. Sorry.]  That is why I was shocked to read this headline from the University of California Los Angeles newsroom: Vitamin D, omega-3 may help clear amyloid plaques found in Alzheimer’s. [Link to the abstract.] It isn’t surprising that something natural might help untangle the mess in a demented brain because something unnatural was probably the cause. Nutrients are quite powerful.

However, since we are constantly told that, at this point, there is no real help (i.e. a drug) for Alzheimer’s, it is surprising that I didn’t see this breakthrough research on the front page of the newspaper. (I honestly don’t think the media could possibly have simply missed this. Maybe the fact that drug companies spend billions on advertising with them has something to do with their lack of interest in a natural approach.)

It seems that when a drug that is still years away being marketed holds even the faintest promise of only slowing the progression of this awful disease, the media falls all over itself to herald it. Heck, they even report optimistically on drugs that have already failed. But, in this case, we have two nutrients in stores TODAY. More amazingly, they are ones that may actually reverse the damage. And yet not a peep. *(See below for other suggestions to support brain health in the face of dementia.)

Sure it was a small pilot study and not a clinical trial, but it did confirm earlier research on this effect. What is the harm if people want to try them now rather than wait for the usual 40 years of study required to reach consensus? It sure isn’t that these are toxic substances. In fact, instead of the dreadful side effects so common to the pharmaceutical approach, these two nutrients are appreciated for a goodly number of fringe benefits. For example, here are some recent studies on vitamin D:

DEATHS from all causes linked to low vitamin D
DEPRESSION and low vitamin D
CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE improvements with vitamin D supplementation
ENDOMETRIOSIS linked to low vitamin D
UTERINE FIBROIDS linked to low vitamin D
BLADDER CANCER — Vitamin D may improve outcomes

Good grief! What drug has that kind of resume?
Here are some recent tidbits on DHA (perhaps the most active component of fish oil).

SUDDEN CARDIAC DEATH risk reduced by 45%
WEIGHT LOSS promoted in obese adults
MEMORY and REACTION TIME improved in healthy young adults
CARDIOVASCULAR RISK IMPROVED (reduced stickiness of blood platelets)
ASTHMA incidence reduced in young adults
PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) reduced by 30%

There is a lot more on both nutrients, but, you get the idea.
 
*More thoughts on dementia
Those helping a loved one deal with dementia should also investigate these factors:

Vitamin B12 deficiency can create memory and mental problems. (Remember that acid-blocking heartburn drugs reduce B12.)
Iron deficiency anemia is often miss-diagnosed  as senility.
The book Brighter Mind reviews a number of well-documented nutritional and lifestyle interventions, including the highly researched nutrient, Phosphatidyl Serine, an ingredient in Memory Works.
Alzheimer’s is often referred to as Type 3 diabetes. When the brain can no longer properly process its usual blood sugar fuel, apparently the fatty acids from coconut oil can provide energy to brain cells. Here is a good book on that topic. LINK
Based on the interview last week on this Vitamin K2 book, vitamin K2 should be on the list to assure that calcium deposits aren’t blocking blood flow to the brain.

 
Last Week
LINK to Archive. I finally got to interview Dr. Kate Rheaume-Bleue.  She is a naturopath and the author of a wonderful book on the importance of Vitamin K2. Here are the readers who really must listen to the archive: pregnant women and diabetics…those confused about supplementing with calcium…those worried about osteoporosis or hardening of the arteries . . .anyone wanting to avoid dental decay (or even heal cavities), cancer, wrinkles, varicose veins or obesity. Okay, that is probably everyone.

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My first book : Natural Alternatives to Nexium, Maalox, Tagamet, Prilosec & Other Acid Blockers. Subtitle: What to Use to Relieve Acid Reflux, Heartburn, and Gastric Ailments.

My latest book: Aloe Vera-Modern Science Sheds Light on an Ancient Herbal Remedy

The information contained in this newsletter has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The contents are for informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice.

Copyright 2013 Martie Whittekin, CCN