Misty Watercolor Memories
I keep coming back to dealing with dementia because it’s like autism…seemingly increasing and now found in every family at some point. The family suffering is magnitudes greater than with other common killers. 
Most in my profession still believe that it’s mostly genetic and there is nothing much you can do about it. That’s completely wrong. Not a little off the mark…completely wrong.
Unfortunately with the state of medicine today to really deal with this issue you have to actively manage your visits with your provider. I’m going to give you a list of things that you should check for every serious memory loss. It’s partially based on the RECODE protocols of Doctor Dale Bredesen but you don’t need to participate in his program to benefit from this list.
First off, the two important references for patients working with memory loss issues are Dr. Bredesen and his book, The End Of Alzheimers and online you can find him at apollohealthco.com and Dr. Dayan Goodenowe and his book Breaking Alzheimers…you can find him online at prodrome.com
Secondly, you have to break down and check out the various ways the brain can go sideways…traumatic, infectious, vascular, toxic and inflammatory. For the significant majority of us it’s going to be inflammatory but you don’t know if you don’t check and it’s easy to check.
Thirdly, you have to check the basic nutritional factors. Is the brain getting the fats and B vitamins it needs to function? Easy blood work to check and rarely checked as you’ll see when you bring your checklist to the doctor…specialist or otherwise.
Fourthly, you need to attend to all the basics…diet, sleep, stress and exercise. Attention to all four is mandatory including a regular exercise program, both for the body and the brain…try BRAINHQ for the latter. In terms of improving brain health nutritionally it’s simple…the less sugar the better for the brain. Low carb is the way to go if you want to preserve the brain matter.
Okay…now for the list.
APOE ALLELE TEST: This is the most important genetic test. Each of us has two alleles of the APO E gene. You can have 2 twos, 2 threes, or 2 fours or any combination of two. But Allele E4 is associated with increased risk of dementia and if you have one E4 your risk is increased. If you have two E4’s your risk is really increased. Knowing these numbers tell you how aggressive you have to be.
SLEEP APNEA TEST: You can say you sleep fine but get the test. I prefer the 3 night in-home test which is a very good start. Everyone with memory loss concerns should get this test as sleep apnea means less oxygen to the brain and more inflammation.
HEAVY METAL TESTING: You never know unless you check.
LYME DISEASE: Again, is it likely? No…but is it possible? Just check.
INFLAMMATORY MARKERS: Fasting insulin, c reactive protein, homocysteine, omega 3/6 ratio, sed rate (sedimentation rate), HA1C level, all should be checked.
IMAGING STUDY: If you want to know about the heart you scan the heart. Ditto the kidney, etc. You should get an MRI. And if you can afford the extra 200 bucks have the different parts of the brain measured so you can assess your progress.
MEMORY TESTING: You need simple tests like the MMSE and the MOCA, which are cheap and easy and simple and repeatable.
SOON TO BE AVAILABLE: A group of three tests. Brainscan by Neurocode will offer three tests that Dr. Bredesen says will measure brain inflammation, risk of alzheimers and more. Dr. Goodenowe has a new blood test that will measure major components of your cell membrane. Membrane health is mitochondrial health is overall health. Too soon to tell if these are going to be the game changers I think they will be, but stay tuned.
So, when it’s time for the doctor visit where you finally get down to addressing memory loss bring this list. The provider should be happy you have done some research and have actionable points. I see a lot of records but I rarely see all these tests being done including at the “specialist” office. You have to take charge and ask for these tests. You can maintain and improve your brain and your memory once you have addressed what you find on these tests. It’s worth the proactivity.
Until next month…Get well and Stay well. JT BARRY MD
