Russ wrote:I know, I know, I'm always the optimist, but good reason to hope that as people begin to consider lifestyle choices, we not only see a correction to the Alzheimer's curve, but also other conditions that have a common root in fundamental things like insulin resistance. Surely not going to change overnight, but seeds of change may already be underway?
HomesteadGal wrote:I wonder how many people will take an interest, though, in their future brain health. Even with prevention and early intervention now becoming available for those at risk for AD (i.e. everyone with a brain), human nature rules the health of the people who have enough money to buy their choices. Alzheimer's cure sweeping the nation? Orangeblossom is right about lifestyle factors. Smokers gonna smoke, obese diabetics gonna eat biscuits while they get their toes amputated...I am not that optimistic about the masses making any changes. They really want a pill for that.
I think I’m halfway between Russ and HomesteadGal
When left to their own devices, smokers are going to smoke, diabetics are going to eat sweets, but I think if a critical mass grew, there would be a sea change. If enough people demanded healthy foods and environmental factors, if enough doctors emphasized lifestyle, if the government would change the nutritional standards… Yes, it’s a BIG effort, but people want to be with the crowd and people want to do the right thing for their health, they just need to be educated to recognize what really is healthy and start demanding it. If we get enough to start demanding, imagine the possibilities!
I think peer pressure is one of the reasons why smoking levels have gone down. Intellectually people understood smoking was bad for them, but it was when co-workers, friends, and children pleaded with them to stop and treated them like pariahs by making them smoke outside, they became motivated.
Many people feed their children sweet things, processed foods, etc. because they don’t know better. We as a society eat fast food because it’s there. But if people understood the damage, if they felt other people’s eyes on them, they wouldn’t feed their child that doughnut (or at least maybe not in public) and fast food menus would change. Coke is experiencing a drop in sales of its soft drink due to consumers shifting away from sweet drinks and artificial sweeteners, so Coke is diversifying to bottled water, tea, and vitamin drinks. Already there are some grocery stores with a "sugar-free" check-out lane.
I think the key to change lies with sugar. Sugar has been dubbed the new smoking, let’s hope this really is true and gains legs. We need a sugar uprising. Right now people share these horrendous sugar filled recipes on facebook, they feel no shame in this, there needs to be shame. When mom suggests going to Starbucks, we need our teenage daughter to tell us, “No mom, all they sell is sugar bombs!” When the office or church throws a potluck party, we need the e-mail to say, “Please, no sugar filled desserts.” (BTW, we go to a low-carb potluck dinner at a friend’s home and bring flax seed bread, it’s slightly sweet because of a little stevia and cinnamon, but not overly, so it can be done! Our friend started this low carb potluck tradition for folks who were interested in eating better but didn’t know how/what to cook could learn and share recipes/health lessons.)
We all love sugar (me too!) because when we eat something sweet (natural or artificial) we want more, it’s addicting. But, if like smoking, our attitudes demonized sugar, if availability went down, if visual temptations went down, if sugar consumption lowered dramatically, insulin resistance would go down. If insulin resistance went down, cancer, T2 diabetes, strokes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, all sorts of ailments would go down.
A close family member is currently dealing with a glioblastoma (brain cancer) diagnosis. He recently had a clean post-surgery/chemo/radiation scan. But glios love glucose and will aggressively reappear with glucose. He is only 30 years old, if he ate a strict ketogenic diet (stricter than the Dr Bredesen levels), he could potentially live a healthy life for many, many years. But since this diagnosis I’ve heard story after story of a glioblastoma patient doing well for a few years but then having a tough time with the diet, falling off the wagon and passing shortly thereafter. My heart grieves for the challenges he faces in life at the office, grocery store, family gatherings, facebook, etc. because the temptations for sugar are everywhere.
Okay, enough soapbox rambling. Thanks for letting me vent.
. It's all we got for now. It's stunning to see that the datatset used in this paper included folks as young as thirty. The sooner folks begin practicing neuroprotective strategies, the better their chances of avoiding the disease. It's becoming clear that our fight is everyone's fight.
