Childhood Trauma Raises Your Risk of Alzheimer’s. Here’s What May Prevent It.

10 Jun Childhood Trauma Raises Your Risk of Alzheimer’s. Here’s What May Prevent It.

You may know that childhood trauma is linked to an increased
risk of cancer, heart disease and other serious diseases. But did you know it can
quadruple your risk of Alzheimer’s disease?

You are 4.2 times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s or another type of dementia if you have four or more Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) such as abuse, neglect or parental divorce, according to a recent study from the Center for Youth Wellness.

Finding out you have an increased risk of Alzheimer’s can be alarming, especially if you’ve lost a parent or another loved one to the devastating brain disease. But knowledge can be power: Armed with the awareness of a higher-than-normal risk of Alzheimers,  you can change your lifestyle and take steps to prevent or delay the disease.

“As it turns out, the solution for Alzheimer’s has been hiding in plain sight,” say Loma Linda University neurologists Dean and Ayesha Sherzai in their book The Alzheimers’ Solution.

Dr. Dean Sherzai is a researcher and co-director (with Ayesha) of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Program at Loma Linda University Medical Center in California. “There’s a false belief that Alzheimer’s is simply genetic, but in reality, we are bringing it into our households by the choices we make and the foods we eat every day,” he told reporters.

“We know now that Alzheimer’s and overall cognitive health are deeply influenced by five main lifestyle factors,” explains the Sherzais in their book, which states there are direct links to Alzheimer’s and “poor nutrition, lack of exercise, chronic stress, poor sleep, and the extent to which we challenge our brains.”

Based on their years of research at Loma Linda University, the husband-and-wife research team argue that a full 90% of Alzheimer’s cases could be prevented by lifestyle changes, and the genetically based cases delayed by 10 to 15 years.

Their bottom line: Science can’t prevent every case of Alzheimer’s, but you can take steps to dramatically reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s, and to even delay the progress of Alzheimer’s if you do get it.

What you can do

Here are science-based strategies advocated by the Sherzais
and some other leading Alzheimer’s researchers:

Switch from processed foods to a whole foods, plant-based diet. Switching to a mostly plant-based diet – even during old age – can slow and possibly even reverse some memory loss, according to research published in the Alzheimer’ and Dementia journal. A Johns Hopkins report recommended the Mediterranean diet, which is heavy on fruits and vegetables, fish, and “good fats,” including those found in olive oil, nuts, and avocados. Other studies have found eating at least one serving of fish a week lowers Alzheimer’s risk by 60%.

You got to move it, move it. Current wisdom “is 150
minutes of aerobic exercise a week, plus several sessions of strength training,
but the benefits of even mild exercise begin to accrue right away,” writes
Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD, director of the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention
Fund, in a 2017
article in Cerebrum.  He and
neurobiologist George Perry note that a Columbia University study found that older
men who walked on treadmills for 30 minutes four times a week grew new cells in
a part of the brain related to memory, cognition, and planning.

The National Institute on Aging says research on exercise and Alzheimer’s prevention is “encouraging but inconclusive,” but adds that regular physical activity is definitely part of healthy aging. And when it comes to evidence connecting lifestyle changes to keeping the brain healthy, “physical activity would probably be the strongest,” Dr. Heather Snyder of the Alzheimer’s Association has said.

Take daily walks. At least one study has suggested that walking at least 6 miles a week can help prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s, and another found that people with mild Alzheimer’s were able to preserve their brain’s key memory and learning center by walking 5 miles a week over a 10-year period. Even a little exercise can go a long way: Another study suggests exercising even a few times a week may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s, especially among those with a high genetic risk (that is, those who carry a gene nicknamed “e4”).  

Manage chronic disease. High blood pressure and
diabetes significantly raise the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, so avoiding
or managing those conditions is important, according to Snyder, who directs
medical and scientific operations for the Alzheimer’s Association.

Unwind and restore. When things get stressful, the Sherzais advise that you relax with mindfulness techniques such as meditation, yoga, and mindful breathing, then restore yourself by spending time in nature, getting 7 to 8 hours of “detoxifying” restorative sleep, and enjoying the support of strong friends and communities. At least one study has found that friends are as important to your health as diet and exercise, and another has found freestyle dancing particularly effective for lowering the risk of Alzheimer’s.

Dish up some curry. Lab-based studies have shown that curcumin, an extract of turmeric, breaks down amyloid-beta plaques mucking up the brain – a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. The jury is still out on turmeric and Alzheimer’s prevention, but given its strong anti-amyloid properties, the Sherzais recommend adding more turmeric to your diet. (People with liver or drinking problems should avoid turmeric products, and always talk with your doctor before using supplements.)

References

Center for Youth Wellness. A Hidden Crisis: Findings about Adverse Childhood Experiences in California. Retrieved from
https://app.box.com/s/nf7lw36bjjr5kdfx4ct9

Diet and Alzheimer’s Disease. Harvard Mental Health Newsletter.

Exercise in midlife cuts Alzheimer’s risk later. Food and
Fitness Advisor. Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

Folate and Other B Vitamins May Fight Mental Decline with Aging. Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter.

Heo HJ, Lee CY. Protective effects of quercetin and vitamin C against oxidative stress-induced neurodegeneration. J Agric Food Chem; 52(25):7514-7.

Khalsa, D.S., and Perry, G.  (2017, March-April). The Four Pillars of
Alzheimer’s Prevention. Cerebrum. Retrieved by https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5501038/

Larson, Eric et al. Exercise is associated with reduced risk for
incident dementia among persons 65 years of age and older. Annals of
Internal Medicine ;144(2):73-81.

Marambaud P, Zhao H, Davies P. Resveratrol promotes clearance of
Alzheimer’s disease amlyloid-beta peptides. J Bio Chem 280(45):37377-82.

Morris, C et al. Dietary fats and the risk of incident Alzheimer
disease. Archives of Neurology 60: 194-200.

Obesity, diet, inactivity linked to dementia risk. Alzheimer’s
Association.

Promising drug treatment for Alzheimer’s found in turmeric
compound. Medical News Today. September 26, 2014 (study published in Stem
Cell Research and Treatment).

Perez, L., Helm, L., Sherzai, A. Dean. (2012, April). Nutrition and Vascular Dementia. The Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12603-012-0042-z

Rabins, Peter, M.D., M.P.H. Memory: Johns Hopkins White Papers.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Sherzai, D., MD,  and Sherzai
A., MD. (2017). The Alzheimer’s Solution: A Breakthrough Program to Prevent
and Reverse the Symptoms of Cognitive Decline. New York, NY: Harper
Collins.

Sherzai, D., Sherzai, A., Lui, K.,
Pan, D., Chiou, D., Bazargan, M., & Shaheen, M. (2016). The Association
Between Diabetes and Dementia Among Elderly Individuals: A Nationwide Inpatient
Sample Analysis. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology, 29(3), 120–125. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891988715627016

Sherzai, D., & Sherzai, A.
(2019). Preventing Alzheimer’s: Our Most Urgent Health Care Priority. American Journal of Lifestyle
Medicine, 1559827619843465.

“Walk Much? It May Protect Your Memory Down the Road.”
Radiological Society of North America meeting news release.

You’re never too old or cranky to get off the couch. Alzheimer’s
Association press release.

Verghese J et al. Leisure activities and the risk of dementia in the elderly. New England Journal of Medicine 348(25): 2508-2516.

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Photos of elders courtesy of Shutterstock