15 Jul
Cognitive impairment diseases like Alzheimer’s disease do affect vast amounts of the ageing population on all continents. The challenge is understanding that before the first signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s emerge, the brain has already altered its state in prior years. However, this very fact also presents a window of opportunity that professionals are targeting to delay, or prevent, the symptoms of dementia. It is suspected that it takes the brain between 15-20 years to build up a significant number of amyloid plaques (brain waste) to see the physical effects of Alzheimer’s.
Introduction
The purpose of this article is to give a brief insight into the functional relationship between nutrition and cognitive impairment, with a specific focus on Alzheimer’s. Based on evidence obtained from numerous scientific research studies from professional bodies such as WHO and the British nutrition foundation. A deeper understanding and association have been drawn to the foods that nourish the brain and foods that impede brain health.
What is Alzheimer’s?
Alzheimer’s is one of the cognitive diseases that are part of the umbrella term (Dementia). Multiple conditions fall under the umbrella term dementia. However, not everyone with dementia necessarily has Alzheimer’s (J, Graff-Radford 2020). Dementia Australia explains that Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting approximately 70% of all people with dementia. Therefore, it warrants the most attention. Alzheimer’s affects brain function enhances memory loss, language and judgment. A layman explanation is that the brain cells entangle, shrink, and die, which causes the shrinking of the brain’s outer layer. Brain waste, also known as amyloid-beta, which develops into amyloid plaques, are found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease. A build-up of this brain waste disrupts the electrical connectivity between brain cells, and eventually, the cells cannot send signals and are starved of necessary nourishment and electrical current.
There is much more to learn about Alzheimer’s, and MindGo will explain the disease in great detail if you sign up for the application or the MindGo Insights.
Brain food for Alzheimer’s Patients
Nutritionists and scientists suggest that the same foods taken by healthy individuals to promote brain health are predominantly the same foods that are advertised for Alzheimer’s patients. Make a conscious effort to eat the foods that stimulate brain health (K, Jennings, 2017).
The essential foods necessary to make a drastic change to your brain in a positive way are as follows:
- Fatty Fish
- Blueberries
- Avocadoes
- Kale
- Spinach
- Lettuce
- Leeks
- Parsnips
- Broccoli
- Mushrooms
- Green Bananas
- Brussel Sprouts
- Cauliflower
- Sweet Potatoes
- Nuts
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Tumeric
- Eggs
- Sauerkraut
- Kimchi
- Onions
- Garlic
- Dark Chocolate
- Green Tea, Herbal Tea, Black Tea
- Coffee
(Dr D. Bredesen 2017) offered the world hope when he revealed the 36 affecting metabolic factors and how to realign them with diet to obtain the balance required to reverse the and even stop Alzheimer’s in its tracks. Diet, lifestyle, support, education and advanced technologies that help with early diagnosis of any disease are crucial to obtaining the relevant countermeasures to combat disease.
As we know, Alzheimer’s is incurable beyond a certain point. However, there is also the management of patients that requires a definitive look at patient care. Over 50 million people have some form of dementia, and the numbers will only grow in the years to come. Ageing populations are a significant problem for most developed countries, and Japan has the world’s most senior citizens. Someone you know in your lifetime, or a few people you know, will, unfortunately, develop a cognitive disease. If you were to picture yourself as a patient or carer managing cognitive disorders in the future, you would look for reliable, trusted medical technologies to aid with precision care. MindGo is a dementia platform developed to better manage patients by learning about each patient and orchestrating each’s health requirements. A bespoke solution to care with a trusted network of family, friends, doctors, nurses and general care assists to enable the best quality of life possible for every patient.
Support the dementia platform MindGo by donating to the applications’ continual progress and assisting our research and development efforts in diet and neurology.
