Vitamin E: The answer to ‘senior moments’?

What was I saying again? Now, I remember: A recent study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that “vitamin E may help delay the loss of function, such as planning and organizing, in Alzheimer’s patients.”

According to the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer’s is an irreversible, progressive disease that slowly destroys the memory and thinking skills, and even the ability to carry out the simplest tasks.

But remember this: Not all vitamin Es are created equal. Since it was discovered in 1922, experts have been wracking their brains over what type of vitamin E is best. Natural vitamin E is listed as the “d-” form (d-alpha-tocopherol, d-beta-tocopherol, etc.) while synthetic vitamin E is listed as “dl-” forms.

Ideally, however, you can get the most, if not all, of your vitamin E from the foods you eat. Which are these foods? Your best bets are nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, chestnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, macadamias) and green leafy vegetables, which are also loaded with other nutrients.

While vitamin E is an excellent way to ward off Alzheimer’s, a diet/lifestyle change won’t hurt, too. Here are some top tips from www.mercola.com:

• Avoid sugar and refined fructose. A recent animal study shows that a diet high in sugar and fat resulted in impaired memory after just one week. Keep your sugar levels to a minimum and your total fructose below 25 grams per day, or as low as 15 grams per day if you have insulin resistance or any related disorders.

• Avoid gluten and casein (primarily wheat and pasteurized dairy, but not dairy fat, such as butter). Research shows that your blood-brain barrier, the barrier that keeps things out of your brain where they don’t belong, is negatively affected by gluten. Gluten also makes your gut more permeable, which allows proteins to get into your bloodstream, where they don’t belong. That then sensitizes your immune system and promotes inflammation and autoimmunity, both of which play a role in the development of Alzheimer’s.

• Eat a nutritious diet rich in folate. Vegetables are arguably the best form of folate. Avoid supplements like folic acid, which is the inferior synthetic version of folate.

• Eat blueberries. Blueberries, which have high anthocyanin and antioxidant contents, are known to guard against Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases. 

• Increase consumption of all healthful fats, including animal-based omega-3. For optimal function, your brain needs, among other things, organic butter from raw milk, clarified butter called organic grass-fed raw butter, olives, organic virgin olive oil and coconut oil, nuts like pecan and macadamia, free-range eggs, and avocado.

• Optimize your gut flora. Eat fermented foods or take a high-potency and high-quality probiotic supplement.

• Optimize your vitamin D levels with safe sun exposure. Research shows that optimal vitamin D levels may enhance the amount of important chemicals in your brain and protect brain cells. Vitamin D also has anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting benefits. Sufficient vitamin D is a must for proper functioning of your immune system to combat inflammation that is associated with Alzheimer’s.

• Improve your magnesium levels. An exciting preliminary research strongly suggests a decrease in Alzheimer’s symptoms with increased levels of magnesium in the brain. Excellent sources of magnesium are green leafy vegetables like spinach, beans and peas, nuts, and seeds, like almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds. Avocados are also a good source. Juicing your vegetables is an excellent way to ensure you’re getting enough magnesium in your diet.

• Take ginkgo biloba. A 1997 study from JAMA shows clear evidence that ginkgo improves cognitive performance and social functioning in dementia sufferers.

• Take alpha lipoic acid. ALA has been shown to help stabilize cognitive functions among Alzheimer’s patients and may slow the progression of the disease.

• Exercise regularly. Exercise increases levels of the protein PGC-1alpha. Research has shown that people with Alzheimer’s have less PGC-1alpha in their brain.

• Avoid aluminum, such as antiperspirants, non-stick cookware, vaccine adjuvants, etc.

• Avoid flu vaccinations as most contain mercury and aluminum, well-known neurotoxic and immunotoxic agents.

• Challenge your mind daily. Mental stimulation, especially learning something new, such as learning to play an instrument or a new language, is associated with a decreased risk of Alzheimer’s. Mental challenge helps to build up your brain, making it less susceptible to the lesions associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Hope you don’t forget all these life-changing reminders.

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Beauty and the breast

For me, one of the most truly touching things on earth is seeing a mother breastfeed her baby.  I can’t think of anything more riveting.  A staunch advocate of the beauty of breastfeeding is the Beauty, Brains & Breastfeeding (BBB), Inc., a nonprofit and lactation consulting organization, which is holding its second annual breastfeeding run aptly called “Nurture Run” on Sunday, April 13, 5:30 a.m. at the Quezon City Memorial Circle with the thought-provoking theme “Awareness for Breastfeeding during Emergency and in the Workplace.”

Herself a mom who breastfed her son and daughter, Iza Abeja, executive director of BBB, notes, “Breastfeeding is the most natural and richest source of nourishment for children yet it’s becoming just an option and not the norm. It’s normal to breastfeed our kids, it’s always been. And yet we are made to think that alternative sources of milk are better than it. Breastfeeding scientifically produces more intelligent and balanced individuals.”

A WHO (World Health Organization) report laments that “over the past hundred years or so, artificial feeding had become so ubiquitous in many developed world settings as to be widely viewed as the standard way to feed infants.

No way. Breast milk is probably the best gift mothers could give their newborns. It’s best for babies and best for mothers, too. But there are top five reasons that discourage breastfeeding, as follows:

1. The baby’s father opposes it.

2. There’s the concern that the baby is not getting enough milk.

3. The mother needs to go back to work and breastfeeding can be a hassle.

4. The mother may feel discomfort during breastfeeding.

5. There’s the misconception that breastfeeding will adversely change the appearance of the breasts.

On the other hand, extensive research has shown the countless beautiful benefits that both mother and child can derive from breastfeeding. Let us count the ways:

1. It builds a stronger immune system for the child. UNICEF Philippines consultants found that “in ordinary and crisis settings, breastfeeding protects infants by providing them with the right balance of nutrients and fluids. What’s more, breast milk contains anti-infective properties to protect an infant from disease-causing pathogens in the environment.

On the other hand, non-breastfed infants are 50 times more vulnerable and likely to be hospitalized due to diarrhea and suffer malnourishment that can lead to death.

2. It saves the child from weight-related diseases in adulthood. According to the 2008 WHO report, breastfeeding is really a long-term investment as it saves children from health problems (like obesity, hypertension, and elevated cholesterol) later on in life.

3. It develops a bond that makes for a healthier and happier child. The emotional bond that breastfeeding creates between mother and baby helps improve the child’s EQ (emotional quotient).  It develops mature and more confident adults, thus lessening the risks of depression as well as the psychological and physical complications that go with it.

4. It benefits mothers, too. A woman burns an average of 500 calories a day when she breastfeeds, resulting in a weight loss of one pound per week. Breastfeeding moms also reduce their risks of breast and ovarian cancers as well as osteoporosis and bone fracture. In addition, breastfeeding works as natural contraceptive as it delays the return of fertility or the probability of getting pregnant again.

5. It saves expenses in terms of hospital bills and work absences. A study by UNICEF and WHO puts the average spending on an infant per month at P4,000 (for formula milk, feeding paraphernalia like bottles, teats, and safe water). On the other hand, breast milk is environment-friendly (no packaging required, no carbon footprint), is free, readily available, and needs no utensils to feed baby.

A happy, healthy baby means a happy mom who has less absence at work.

And that’s the beauty of breast milk.

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To register for the Nurture Run on April 13, visit www.nurturerun.com. For more details on BBB, visit www.beautybrainsandbreastfeeding.com and www.facebook.com/beautybrainsandbreastfeeding.