Sadly to say, there are no medications that can cure the disease of Alzheimer’s. The build-up of beta amyloid protein, that is the hallmark finding in Alzheimer’s patients, kills the brain cells it is surrounding. Once these cells die, there is nothing that can bring them back to life. As more and more of these cells die, the individual’s memory and reasoning function deteriorates until the time comes when they have to depend on someone else in order to carry on their every-day living. In time, their life is gone but their body continues living. It is a medical shame that no medication has been developed that can even improve the symptoms of someone who has Alzheimer’s. Just recently, a report was released from a major drug company that the Alzheimer’s drug they had been developing failed their clinical trials.
The only treatment for Alzheimer’s is the word: PREVENTION. Medical studies are showing that certain controllable lifestyles are showing that the risk of Alzheimer’s can be significantly reduced by lifestyle changes. Certain people who have Alzheimer’s have different lifestyles that those who don’t have the dreaded disease.
With there being no medication that can prevent or cure Alzheimer’s, modifying your lifestyle to alleviate the risk factors remains the cornerstone for the prevention of Alzheimer’s.
Several studies have found that in patients with the combination of Alzheimer’s disease and arterial disease, it takes fewer of the hallmark beta-amyloid to cause the dementia symptoms if there is associated arterial disease. A key reminder is that the greater the decrease in the flow of blood in the brain, the greater the decline in cognitive function. We know steps that can be taken to prevent the arterial part of the problem. The health of your arteries is a key player which you control in the fight against Alzheimer’s.
It is not known whether the arterial problems are primary causes of Alzheimer’s or whether damage to your arteries makes you more susceptible to the formation of the beta-amyloid plaque buildup in the brain. Either way, arterial damage lowers the threshold for the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease to manifest itself. Even though the overall cause of Alzheimer’s is very complex, it is important to understand as many of the causative factors as possible if your ultimate goal is prevention.
Whether you have high LDL cholesterol or are overweight or don’t exercise or have high blood pressure or diabetes – you want to go after any risk factor that shows up in so many people who have Alzheimer’s. You want to fight the good fight with all you can control: your weight, your eating habits, and your personal exercise program. It all begins with commitment and the desire to live your life with years of quality.
