Degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimer’s and Dementia can creep up on you without warning, so it's important to know the causes and how to prevent these debilitating dis-eases before they take hold.
Symptoms of these diseases include memory loss, personality changes, issues with language, delusions, agitation, and so much more.
Prevention is your best bet to protect yourself from developing them as you age, and it starts now. The risks for Alzheimer’s and dementia increase as you get older, but you can help lower those risks.
By using the below five easy ways to protect yourself and your mind, you can improve your brain function, memory, coordination, mobility, and independence.
With just a few simple tweaks to your diet and lifestyle, you’ll live a healthier life and minimise or even eliminate the risk of these terrible diseases.
1. Eliminate Aluminum Exposure
One of the first things to do when working to prevent Alzheimer’s and early onset Dementia is to eliminate your exposure to aluminium.
Aluminium has been linked as a major culprit of degenerative brain dis-eases and it has snuck into many different parts of our lives from personal care products to cookware and accessories.
Sources that should be avoided include:
- Aluminium cookware, utensils and foil
- Bid brand deodorants and antiperspirants
- Municipal drinking water
- Packaged drinks in aluminium-lined cartons or cans.
These small tweaks make almost no difference in your day-to-day life, but they can make a huge difference in protecting you from dis-eases of the brain.
Residues of aluminium in the body can be helped out with the regular consumption of apples and grapes. Apples have powerful pectins that bind metallic waste in the body and brain for removal from the body, whilst grapes are very effective at cleansing the blood stream due to their richness in malic acid.
Additionally, juice fasting periodically for a number of consecutive days can be a very beneficial way to cleanse and detoxify the body of aluminium and other toxic metals in the body. Try preparing your own Cabala Juice at home, which is a powerful an healing blend for all round detoxification. Read about it here
Finally, raw nuts like Walnuts and Almonds should be included in your diet regularly because they provide vital nutrients and oils that help to protect and break up lipofusin plaque and accumulated metallic residues in the brain.
Find natural, aluminium-free deodorants in our store.
2. Eat Blueberries
A great reason to fill up on juicy blueberries is the fact that they can actually help prevent Alzheimer’s and early dementia. Blueberries are known to stem and even reverse age-related memory loss.
What’s their secret?
Anthocyanins. These nutrients increase communication between ageing brain cells and fight off free radicals. According to the USDA, blueberries have the highest occurrence of anthocyanins power of the 20 most common fruits and berries.
Blueberries - like all berries - are nature's protector-inhibitors, so they should be consumed in different varieties regularly whenever they're in season. The nutritional compounds consumed seasonally, help to boost the immune system and protect the cells year round.
Try and incorporate a handful of blueberries into multiple meals a day, from oatmeal to smoothies, salads, snacks, and more.
Learn more in Why Berries Are Nature’s True Vaccines: 5 Reasons You Should Eat Them When in Season.
3. Exercise Daily
There’s no underscoring the importance of regular exercise in a healthy lifestyle, but what if it could also help you prevent Alzheimer’s and Dementia?
Moderate exercise can help prevent the development of any brain related disease, including strokes because it delivers crucial oxygen to the brain.
Even the Alzheimer's Research and Prevention Foundation confirms regular exercise can reduce the risk of alzheimers by up to 50%.
You don't have to go over the top: Just 30-40 minutes of brisk walking per day is a quality base to work from. Additionally, exercises like swimming, pilates and yoga which stimulate balance and resistance for the muscles is a beneficial layer you can include.
4. Stop Eating Plaque-Building Foods
Much research has been dedicated to revealing how plaque buildup can help lead to Alzheimer’s and early dementia. The simplest solution is to eliminate foods that cause the build up of plaque from your diet.
These include foods like:
- Fast Food
- Food Colouring and Preservatives
- Artificial Sweeteners
- Processed Meat
- Sodas and Sports Drinks
- Packed processed foods like cakes, cereals, cookies and frozen meals
- Refined Carbohydrates
- Commercial Dairy products
At the same time, start consuming foods that help clear away plaque buildup. Start with a diet rich in whole, plant-based foods which contain the nutrients and fibre to help remove toxicity out of the body through the digestive system.
Research has shown that spices like turmeric and staple garlic and onions have disease-preventative and anti-inflammatory powers and should be a regular inclusion in your diet also.
5. Eat Your Vitamins
Vitamins not only improve your overall health and wellness, but could help prevent or delay Alzheimer’s and early dementia. In particular, whole food vitamin E and vitamin C have been shown to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s dis-ease.
You can get vitamin E from green leafy vegetables, nuts, legumes, oatmeal, seeds, sweet potatoes, and whole grains. Vitamin C is plentiful in citrus fruits, avocados, berries, kale, spinach, green peas, broccoli, and more.
Vitamin B12 could also be a possible nutritional prevention or treatment. B12 is mostly found in animal meat and byproducts, but with a little effort you can get all the vitamin B12 you need from whole foods.
Whole food sources of vitamin B12 include:
- Soybeans and soy products
- Tempeh
- Mushrooms
- Algae/seaweed
- Fortified plant milks
The important part is to get your vitamins from whole food sources, rather than supplements. Supplements simply aren’t as effective and they’re more likely to add toxins to your body rather than heal you.
Without the life force that comes from whole food in its most natural state, supplements simply drain you of money at best, and at worst introduce toxins into your body. Opt for organic, locally grown whole foods instead and your body will thank you.
Learn more in The Truth About Vitamin Supplements.
More Ways to Prevent Alzheimer’s and Early Dementia:
- Drink plenty fo pure water every day - a minimum of 2 litres which is the weight of the brain, or 1 litre per 22 kilos of body weight if you're particularly active or suffering from poor health conditions;
- Daily sunshine and walking for Alzheimer’s can never be stressed enough.
- Eat brain-health foods high in omega-3 fatty acids like flaxseed, olive oil, and nuts.
- Keep yourself engaged and active in your work and social life to keep your mind alert and youthful.
- Avoid alcohol and smoking, as these are toxins that can cause damage to your brain.
- Alzheimer’s could be linked to insulin resistance, so avoid refined sugar and refined carbohydrates as much as possible.
- Use quality essential oils like frankincense and rosemary oil to help stimulate brain function.
- Avoid medications and supplements as much as possible. Many are linked with early dementia and lowered brain function because they leave toxic residues in the body. Let nature be your medicine through whole foods, sunshine, fresh air, and water.
- Get plenty of sleep every night to ensure your brain has a chance to rest and recover.
Alzheimer’s and early dementia can be scary dis-eases that take you by surprise and change your entire life for good. While there’s no cure once you develop them, prevention can help fend them off or at least slow down their progression.
As always, by embracing mother nature and wholefoods to your advantage, you can protect yourself from these degenerative dis-eases and keep yourself youthful and vibrant as long as possible.
Tolman Self Care.
