DIY Following the Bredesen Protocol

[Bodnerr]

Hi all,
After reading Dr. Bredsen’s book and hearing him speak on many podcasts I have decided that the Bredesen Protocol is the way I’d like to tackle my situation. However, I have many concerns around cost since I am young and many physician’s visits and tests will not be covered through my insurance. I realize that signing up for the ReCODE software would be necessary ($900 annually) to analyze my lab results and truly follow the recommendations of the protocol. But after seeking out physicians in my area and getting some quotes I am realizing how quickly the costs could skyrocket especially over the course of many years. I would consider myself quite savvy when it comes to understanding the labs required and I spend a lot of my free time reading up on the latest and greatest studies and research that coincides with many of the Bredesen interventions.

My question to the community is, do many people go this road alone without a physician’s guidance and do you find it doable? I truly think I can keep up with the literature but I am wondering how the software works and if I will be able to get my labs done with independent 3rd parties and submit the results into the ReCODE software myself and see where I stand and make adjustments as necessary. I realize there are a lot of physicians on this forum and I am hoping for an unbiased opinion from everybody as to what they think about their approach.

Thank you,

[Julie G]

Welcome bodnerr! Kudos for you for being proactive with your cognitive health.

My question to the community is, do many people go this road alone without a physician’s guidance and do you find it doable?

The short answer: YES. I address this topic in greater detail here.

[NF52]

I have decided that the Bredesen Protocol is the way I’d like to tackle my situation. However, I have many concerns around cost since I am young and many physician’s visits and tests will not be covered through my insurance.

Hey Bodnerr,
Welcome to a group that wrestles with similar questions! Julie G (who started this forum several years ago to allow support knowledge around health and ApoE 4) gave you a good answer: yes, you can do this yourself--with some caveats on her link. Many people decide to do as much as they can of the Bredesen Protocol, and get some labs from their doctor and other blood through online vendors (which they then get at the same local labs they might go to for routine blood work). Others decide to take an eclectic approach and address whatever they feel are the big issues in their own life (sleep, stress reduction, exercise, healthier eating) wth the idea of starting small and monitoring how they feel.
You mentioned the medical professionals on this site, so may want to check out the PRIMER, written by Stavia, who is a physician and has an ApoE 4/4 profile.
You don't specify how young you are. If you're in your 20's or 30's, it's not too early to adopt healthy and sustainable lifestyle habits, including continued cognitive and social engagement. It's likely that the science around how to personalize risk predictions for people your age will improve a lot in the next 10 years. In my own opinion, you have time to keep up your reading and testing out ideas for yourself. Members sometimes call these N=1 experiments, since the N (number) of subjects in an experiment on yourself is always 1--and always important!
Hope you continue to add to our conversation!

[Cas]

Hi Bodner

Welcome to the forum. As Julie’s post said it is possible and the primer is a brilliant starting place as NF52 has said above.

There is also an opportunity to work with a health coach through the Functional Medicine coaching academy which may be of interest to support you with the process of lifestyle change.

There is so much support on this site and so many people who are working through the Bredesen protocol at various stages - give definitely found the rig place.

Take care
Catherine

[Plumster]

Hi, so far I am doing it without the official Bredesen Protokol, but with the help of integrative doctors. It's wonderful to have this Forum for questions and support.