New to forum and thankful

[Walnut26]

I discovered that I am homozygous for apoE 4 about a month ago through 23 and Me. I am a 50 year old woman at the highest point thus far in my career and with my husband and 2 teenage daughters. This rocked me. My Grandmother died of Alzheimer’s disease in her late 80’s and one of my aunts is experiencing dementia in her early 70’s. Dale Bredesen’s book gave me hope. I have adopted as many of the lifestyle changes that I can. Exercise, 16 hour fast, keto. My next planned move is to find a physician in Chicago who can help me with the parts of the protocol that require testing and expertise. I am fortunate to be a scientist and also have past experience with living la vida low carb. I practiced this diet pattern for a solid 2 years in the 90’s when it was less mainstream than it is today. Now there are meal kit delivery services that offer keto. We are making progress! I have one question. Why do some avoid dairy? Whole fat plain Greek yogurt (5% Fage is my fave) and natural cheeses are a part of my diet. I hope they can stay.

Thank you for welcoming me and for the wealth of information on this forum. I am excited to be a part of this conversation.

[NF52]

I discovered that I am homozygous for apoE 4 about a month ago through 23 and Me. I am a 50 year old woman at the highest point thus far in my career and with my husband and 2 teenage daughters. This rocked me... I have one question. Why do some avoid dairy? Whole fat plain Greek yogurt (5% Fage is my fave) and natural cheeses are a part of my diet. I hope they can stay.

Thank you for welcoming me and for the wealth of information on this forum. I am excited to be a part of this conversation.

Welcome, Walnut26!

Most of us with ApoE 4/4 have had our world "rocked" by the news--and like you, have decided that knowledge becomes powerful when we go beyond scary "data"--much of it from small studies done years ago by people without your stellar cognitive, physical and social strengths. As someone who will be 68 in a few months, I plan to sail past the doomsday prediction I saw in 2014 that I would be diagnosed with Alzheimer's at 68! The Generations 1 & 2 trials (in which I was a participant) enrolled about 1100 people with ApoE 4/4 who were cognitively and physically healthy between the ages of 60-75. (They screened about 10,000 eligible people with ApoE 3/4 or 4/4 and clearly many more could have been eligible.). And we have people on this forum who are in their late 70's and early 80's with no sign of cognitive impairment. Sometimes scientists don't find exceptions to the "rule" unless they start looking for them!

As for your question on dairy, it is an individual choice as to whether to limit or exclude it from our diets. Here is an excerpt from Moderator and Board Member TheresaB's wonderfully readable Wiki entry on Mitochondria: Foods to Avoid

Dairy products. From Dave Asprey’s book Head Strong, (bold font added to emphasize effects on mitochondria):

But even people who are not lactose intolerant are often sensitive to the main protein in dairy products, casein. Casein has a similar molecular structure to gluten, and people who are sensitive to one are often also sensitive to the other. In many people, casein breaks down into casomorphin, which binds to the opiate receptors in your brain and makes you feel sedated. Even worse, milk protein isolates are common ingredients in popular “keto” or “low-carb” protein bars. This is not what you want in a highly performing brain! Milk protein causes inflammation, which lowers mitochondrial function. Milk protein also binds to the good-for-you polyphenols in your diet (like the ones found in your coffee!) and makes them unavailable to your body—and your mitochondria. When you put milk protein isolates and casein into your coffee by adding milk, half-and-half, cream, or other creamers, the polyphenols become 3.4 times less absorbable in your body.4 The same thing happens if you use black coffee to wash down a milk protein–based “keto protein bar.” So not only does milk protein directly change your mitochondria for the worse, it also prevents you from absorbing the nutrients that can repair and strengthen your mitochondria.

You are lucky to live in Chicago (maybe not so much today, with a winter storm!) because of the availability of both ApoE-4 Aware Health Practitioners and Health Coaches. You may want to check out these resources in our Wiki for people near you and for ways to search for others:
Searching for a Healthcare Practitioner
ApoE4-Aware Healthcare Practitioners

ApoE4-Aware Health Coaches

Congratulations on doing everything right so far! You are light years ahead of where I was at 50.

[Walnut26]

Thank you for the links to the information. I will check these out. I’ll look up Asprey’s book to see how he has reached these conclusions (i.e. evidence). Perhaps it comes down to testing whether certain foods have an impact on inflammatory markers or not. Thanks again!