Tag Archives: inflammation

6 surprising ways to increase your chances of living a healthy longer life

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Ponce de Leon claimed to have discovered the Fountain of Youth in Florida. I’ve been to Warm Mineral Springs, in North Port, Florida, which lays claim to de Leon’s discovery and calls itself the Fountain of Youth. Another natural spring in northwest Florida in Ponce de Leon springs State Park also calls itself the Fountain of Youth. I am a frequent visitor to hot springs (see my article on AAA’s Encompass website: ) and I feel refreshed and rejuvenated after soaking for several hours. But I need something stronger than a dose of calcium carbonate or sulphur to slow down the ticking of the clock, as far as my skin, muscles and cells are concerned.

I’ve asked myself and my guess is that you have also pondered the age-old question “would you want to live forever?”  The children’s book “Tuck Everlasting” by Natalie Babbitt explores the concept of immortality and explores whether living forever is as desirable as it may appear to be.

The typical response is only if I could stay healthy and vibrant. In our life time we will most likely not attain immortality, but there are a number of anti-aging tricks for slowing down the clock.

Age defying nutrients

  1. Study finds link between high EPA and DHA Omega-3 blood levels and decreased risk of death  Higher Omega-3 levels are linked to longer life. In a 15-year study of 6,500 elderly women, those with the highest blood concentration of omega-3 fatty acids were 20 percent less likely to die from any cause compared to those with the lowest levels. The researchers estimated that intakes of about 1 gram per day of EPA and DHA would be enough for a woman with the lowest blood serum concentration to shift to the group with the highest concentration. How? By taking one to three soft-gels of a high-quality omega-3 supplement daily or one teaspoon of a liquid supplement. Another option is to eat two or three salmon fillets each week.
  2. Study Finds Association Between Eating Hot Peppers And Decreased Mortality  If you like hot chile peppers eat more of them! After studying more than 16,000 adults, researchers at the University of Vermont found that those who ate chili peppers had a lower risk of dying from heart disease or stroke. The study did not indicate the quantity of peppers consumed, but capsaicin, the active ingredient that makes peppers “hot” aids in preventing obesity, supports blood flow, reduces inflammation and has antimicrobial properties.
  3. Beans, beans the musical fruit, the more you eat the more you toot. There’s another reason to eat beans. They contain phytates, nutritional compounds that strengthen the immune system and kill cancer cells. They also support brain health and are said to reverse the aging process at the cellular level. Beans are also high in fiber which helps lower cholesterol and regulate blood sugar.
  4. Two studies found that those with higher levels of vitamin D have longer telomeres, and thus may actually age more slowly than people with low vitamin D levels. Telomeres are the caps at the end of each strand of DNA that protect our chromosomes. A good analogy is that they are like the plastic tips at the end of shoelaces. Without the coating, shoelaces become frayed until they can no longer do their job.  Similarly, without telomeres DNA strands become damaged and then cells can’t do their job.  A study that included 4,347 participants in which 47% were men and 42% were women, researchers concluded that there is positive association between vitamin D levels and telomere length. This means that people with higher levels of vitamin D may actually age more slowly than people with lower levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D reduces the effects of chronic inflammation and may play a role in protecting your body from deteriorating from diseases associated with aging.The association of telomere length and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in US adults: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

  5. The traditional diet in Okinawa is anchored by root vegetables, especially sweet potatoes, green and yellow vegetables, soybean-based foods, and medicinal plants. Another feature of the Okinawan diet is the consumption of green tea. There have been more than 1000 studies done on the antioxidants found in green tea, demonstrating how they may be providing some level of chemoprevention in prostate and breast cancer. Green tea has also been shown to help reduce cardiovascular disease. Drink green tea for health and relaxation

    Many characteristics of the traditional Okinawan diet are shared with other healthy dietary patterns, including the traditional Mediterranean diet, DASH diet, and Portfolio diet. All these dietary patterns are associated with reduced risk for cardiovascular disease, among other age-associated diseases. Overall, the important shared features of these healthy dietary patterns include: high intake of unrefined carbohydrates, moderate protein intake with emphasis on vegetables/legumes, fish, and lean meats as sources, and a healthy fat profile (higher in mono/polyunsaturated fats, lower in saturated fat; rich in omega-3). The healthy fat intake is likely one mechanism for reducing inflammation, optimizing cholesterol, and other risk factors. Additionally, the lower caloric density of plant-rich diets results in lower caloric intake with concomitant high intake of phytonutrients and antioxidants. Other shared features include low glycemic load, less inflammation and oxidative stress, and potential modulation of aging-related biological pathways. This may reduce risk for chronic age-associated diseases and promote healthy aging and longevity.

    Social interaction is important

     

  6.  Dan Buettler, author of The Blue Zones of Happiness: Lessons From the World’s Happiest People, Oct 3, 2017 researched communities around the world to find out what centenarians had in common. These amazing people had one thing in common: strong social relationships. Being socially connected actually helps you to live longer! Studies are showing that loneliness might be a bigger health risk than smoking or obesity. In fact, loneliness and social isolation is considered not just a psychological issue but a medical one that can actually kill you. According to a far-reaching study (meta-analysis of scientific literature on the subject January 1980 to February 2014) conducted by Brigham Young University, social isolation and loneliness is as dangerous to health as smoking 15 cigarettes and drinking six ounces of alcohol a day, and increases one’s likelihood of death by 32%. Isolation and feeling alone has also been shown to contribute to depression, cognitive decline, the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, and poor recovery from illness and surgery.

If you are feeling a lonely or isolated, get ahead of the lonely curve now to expand your social network. Don’t put it off. Getting socially connected might take some effort, but it is definitely worth it for so many reasons. You will gain friendship, companionship, better health, and in the process you will be giving of yourself, which is the best gift of all.

“Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s & Dementia” by Barbra Cohn contains a treasure trove of information on how to stay connected with your loved one, keep calm, improve immunity, reduce stress and feel happier and healthier. Plus, it includes 20 healing modalities that the caregiver can do alone or with their loved one. Available wherever fine books are sold and on Amazon.

BarbraCohn__

Could leaky gut cause Alzheimer’s?

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Leaky Gut Syndrome - Irritable Bowel Syndrome

When I took my husband to a “holistic” neurologist almost two decades ago she questioned him for hours about his medical and lifestyle history. Together, we came up with a hypothesis that my husband’s Alzheimer’s could have been triggered by his life-long inflammation issues and digestive problems. As a child Morris suffered from eczema and severe asthma. He was an allergic adult with poor digestion.

We theorized that Morris had leaky gut syndrome caused by intestinal permeability. Although this is not typically taught in medical school, the term “leaky gut syndrome” is being studied more and more as people complain of various symptoms such as bloating, gas, food sensitivities and unexplained aches and pains.

Basically, the syndrome occurs when tight junctions in the gut, which control what passes through the lining of the small intestine, don’t work properly. Inflammation in the gut, due to poor eating habits, low levels of healthy intestinal bacteria, infections, intestinal parasites, over-use of medications (especially NSAIDs such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), and imbalanced gastric juices can all lead to a weakening of the intestinal lining. Tiny breaks in the tissue lining can result in leaky gut syndrome, allowing protein molecules to travel via the blood throughout the body all the way to the brain. Antibodies attack the proteins which are viewed as foreign enemies in the blood bathing the brain, which results in inflammation.

(Chapters 20 and 31 in “Calmer Waters: The Caregiver’s Journey through Alzheimer’s and Dementia” contain more information about ayurveda and nutrition that calms down the nervous system and supports immunity.)  

What is Inflammation?
Inflammation is part of the immune system’s response to defend you against microbial
infections. It is the body’s first line of defense against the invasion of microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses, and it is activated rapidly after infection. The microbes are detected as foreign to the body by immune cells such as macrophages, which literally means “big eater.” Macrophages engulf foreign microorganisms and then release cytokines and chemokines that attract other cells that help in regulating the infected or affected area. Blood flow to the area is increased, which you notice when the area around a cut swells, turns red and feels warm. These are all signs of external inflammation. The chronic internal inflammation caused by leaky gut can result in inflammatory conditions leading to a host of diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease.

Approximately 70% of your immune system cells are found in your gut.

In one study, researchers found that when they compared healthy mice to mice with induced Alzheimer’s symptoms the sick mice had a different composition of gut bacteria. The researchers also studied Alzheimer’s disease in mice that completely lacked bacteria to further test the relationship between intestinal bacteria and the disease. Mice without bacteria had a significantly smaller amount of beta-amyloid plaque in the brain. (Beta-amyloid plaques are the lumps that form at the nerve fibres in the brain and are considered the main culprit of Alzheimer’s disease.)

To clarify the link between intestinal flora and the occurrence of Alzheimer’s, the researchers transferred intestinal bacteria from diseased mice to germ-free healthy mice. They discovered that the mice with the unhealthy bacteria developed more beta-amyloid plaques in the brain compared to the healthy mice.

“Our study is unique as it shows a direct causal link between gut bacteria and Alzheimer’s disease. It was striking that the mice which completely lacked bacteria developed much less plaque in the brain,” says researcher Frida Fåk Hållenius, at the Food for Health Science Centre.

The important thing to note here, though, is that the bacteria found in the “Alzheimer’s” mice was abnormal. It was not the healthy bacteria crucial to healthy immunity and digestion in the human body.

Other recent studies are pointing to possible links between Alzheimer’s disease and infections. As reported by Gina Kolata in the New York Times (May 25, 2016), Harvard researchers  reported in the journal “Science Translational Medicine” this hypothesis: “that a virus, fungus or bacterium gets into the brain, passing through a membrane — the blood-brain barrier — that becomes leaky as people age. The brain’s defense system rushes in to stop the invader by making a sticky cage out of proteins, called beta amyloid. The microbe, like a fly in a spider web, becomes trapped in the cage and dies. What is left behind is the cage — a plaque that is the hallmark of Alzheimer’s.”

David Perlmutter, MD, a neurologist, author and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition, offers this interesting article about probiotics as being a possible  tool for reversing Alzheimer’s disease. http://www.drperlmutter.com/reversing-alzheimers-with-probiotics/

Researchers evaluated 60 patients with Alzheimer’s for 12 weeks. First the group went through a blood test to determine their levels of highly sensitive c-reactive protein (hs-CRP) a powerful marker of inflammation. They also took the mini-mental status exam (MMSE), the most commonly used cognitive assessment tool for memory impairment.

Half the group was given a placebo, with the other half taking a probiotic milk containing the probiotic species, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Bifidobacterium bifidum, and Lactobacillus fermentum. The results of the study were stunning. The placebo group showed an increase in hs-CRP, an inflammation marker, by an impressive 45%. In the group taking the probiotic, hs-CRP actually declined by 18% indicating a dramatic reduction in inflammation.
Dr. Perlmutter says, “But here’s the truly exciting news. Over the 12 weeks, the patients in the placebo continued to decline mentally, as you might expect. Their MMSE score dropped from 8.47 to 8.00, a substantial reduction. But the group on the inflammation reducing probiotics actually demonstrated, not a decline in brain function, but an actual improvement, with their MMSE scores going from 8.67 up to 10.57, and that’s a huge improvement. Again, not only was their mental decline stopped in it’s tracks, these individuals regained brain function!

He continues, “The message here is that inflammation is directly determined by the health and diversity of our gut bacteria, and this has major implications in terms of brain health, function, and disease resistance. Recognizing that inflammation is the mechanism underlying not just Alzheimer’s disease, but Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, coronary artery disease, and even cancer means that the findings in this report may have wide implications.”

Healing the gut. . .reducing inflammation

It seems there might be a two-pronged approach to healing the gut by reducing inflammation and restoring beneficial bacterial.

  1. Restore beneficial bacteria
  • Eat fermented foods such as yogurt, kefir, kimchi, Sauerkraut, apple cider vinegar, and Japanese foods like miso, kombucha and natto.
  • Take a daily probiotic such as Garden of Life’s Raw Probiotics Colon Care or MegaFloria Probiotics, or check out the reviewed probiotic supplements at The Best Probiotic Supplement site.
  • Take L-glutamine, an amino acid, which is essential to a healthy immune and digestive system, heals leaky gut and reduces sugar cravings.

2. To reduce inflammation

Reduce consumption of foods that are known to cause inflammation

  • sugary drinks and desserts
  • white flour products
  • fried foods
  • artificial sweeteners and additives
  • vegetables oils such as canola, sunflower, soy, corn, safflower or palm oil which have a high concentration of the inflammatory fat omega 6 and are low in the anti-inflammatory fat omega-3. Instead, use olive, avocado, walnut and coconut oils.
  • saturated fats
  • meat—reduce your consumption and try to eat only grass-fed beef and chicken that is free-range
  • alcohol

 

It also helps to reduce your stress, get a good nights’ sleep, drink plenty of water, and exercise!

 

Five surprising causes of memory loss

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Mind concept graphic for memory loss or alzheimer's diseaseAfter my husband had a surgical procedure that required anesthesia, not only did he wake up groggy, but his early stage Alzheimer’s disease worsened. He got lost driving in our home town and had more difficulty with everyday activities. Years later, it was a kidney stone that sent him over the edge into a downward spiral. It’s not a surprise that anesthesia can cause memory loss, temporary or permanent. But it came as a surprise when something as common as a kidney stone had a severe impact on my husband’s mental condition and overall health.

There is a link between common infections such as UTIs (urinary tract infections), the flu, colds, and stomach viruses and their effect on memory in the elderly and dementia populations. A significant study found that people with Alzheimer’s, who get even a mild respiratory or gastrointestinal infection, or a bump or bruise are at risk for having a significant, permanent memory loss, according to a report that was published in the September 8, 2009 issue of the journal Neurology. These patients can have high levels of tumor necrosis factor—alpha (TNF-a)—a protein that is linked to inflammation and is associated with memory loss and cognitive decline.

In the study done at the Clinical Neurosciences Research Division at the University of Southampton, United Kingdom, 222 Alzheimer’s patients were followed for six months. Of those, 110 people had an infection or injury that resulted in inflammation. These individuals had twice the memory loss during that period of time as the individuals who did not have an illness or injury. Researchers attribute the memory loss to inflammation. In patients whose TNF-a levels were high to begin with, an infection increased their memory loss to 10 times more than those who had low TNF-a levels. Clive Holmes, PhD, lead researcher, said that this population should be vaccinated against the flu, and infections and injuries should be treated as soon as possible.

Other surprising causes of memory loss

  1. UTIs–Urinary tract infections are notorious for causing delirium and delusional behavior in the elderly. When younger people get a urinary tract infection, they typically experience painful urination, an urgent need to urinate, lower abdominal pain, back pain on one side, and fever and chills. However, an older adult might not experience those symptoms. As we get older our immune system changes and it responds differently to infection. Instead of pain symptoms, seniors with a UTI may show increased signs of confusion, agitation or withdrawal. In older adults with dementia, these behavioral changes may come across as part of that condition or signs of advanced aging. If the underlying UTI goes unrecognized and untreated for too long, it can spread to the bloodstream and become life-threatening. In fact, I have a dear friend who recently died from a UTI that quickly became septic.
  2. Vitamin B12 is essential for normal nerve function. A deficiency can lead to confusion and dementia. It is vital to get 2.4 micrograms of B12 in your diet every day from sources such as dairy products, meat and fish, or from foods fortified with vitamin B12. Vegans must take a B12 supplement since the vitamin is found in animal foods.
  3. Sleep apnea causes one to stop breathing during the night. It can be very brief and very frequent, but it is treatable. Unfortunately, sleep apnea islinked to memory loss and dementia, according to Constantine Lyketsos, MD, director of the Memory and Alzheimer’s Treatment Center at Johns Hopkins Medicine and professor and chair of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Bayview. You might have sleep apnea if you wake up with a headache and have daytime fatigue — or if your partner complains of loud snoring. A study published in The Journal of Neuroscience found that untreated sleep apnea affects spatial navigational memory. This type of memory includes being able to remember directions or where you put things like your keys. The research suggests that deep sleep, also known as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, plays an important role in memory. Dr. Lyketsos explains that for people with sleep apnea, oxygen delivery to the brain is interrupted several hundred times during the night . He says, The brain is stressed, so people wake up, and the injury sleep apnea causes can show up as a variety of memory loss symptoms. If you or someone you know has sleep apnea, please make an appointment with your health practitioner.
  4. Some medications such as statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs), sleeping pills, antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications and some painkillers have been found to increase the risk for reversible cognitive side effects, including memory loss and confusion. A commonly prescribed type 2 diabetes drug, metformin, has also been associated with memory problems. A study published in Diabetes Care found that people with diabetes who took the drug had worse cognitive performance than those who did not take it.
  5. Thyroid disease can cause poor memory, especially in seniors. Hypothyroidism is very common in people over 60 and it steadily increases with age. It is believed that up to one in four individuals in nursing homes may have undiagnosed hypothyroidism. Memory loss or declining cognitive functioning which is frequently attributed to old age, might be the only symptom of hypothyroidism in an elderly person. If there is a family history of thyroid disease, past treatment for hyperthyroidism or a history of surgery and/or radiotherapy to the neck, a physician might be able to better establish a link leading to a diagnosis. Thyroid disease is a lifelong disorder that can be treated with medication, but the patient must be closely monitored to make sure the correct dosage is prescribed.

Tips for protecting your memory and keeping you and your loved one healthy and safe

  • Inoculate against flu, pneumonia and shingles
    Boost immunity with zinc, vitamin D and vitamin C
  • Take a complete B-vitamin supplement to make sure you are getting a balanced amount of B vitamins.
  • Prevent falls and accidents (recommended: Complete Guide to Alzheimer’s Proofing Your Home by Mark Warner http://store.nexternal.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=ageless&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=668834865&Count2=585975289&CategoryID=3&Target=products.asp
  • Reduce systemic inflammation with a curcumin (turmeric extract) supplement
  • Use a humidifier to moisturize nasal passages and mucous membranes to help keep them healthy
  • Engage in gentle exercise to reduce inflammation
  • Keep hydrated by drinking at least 6-8 glasses of water each day
  • Encourage seniors to use the bathroom several times a day, approximately every two to three hours.
  • Make sure the senior is maintaining good hygiene, with showers at least several times a week.
  • If the person is incontinent, make sure he or she changes undergarments frequently.

There are other articles on my blog that discuss how to support your memory and cognition. Please subscribe today, and feel free to send me your questions.

To your health.

Sincerely,

Barbra Cohn