POPEYE FIGHTS OFF DEMENTIA

Well I've always known the importance of green vegetables in the diet Spinach being one of those and here we see how it's valuable in fighting off dementia. Recently I wrote how Marmite is good at fighting dementia because of Vitamin B complex, Vit B12 injections are given in the early stages of dementia to help delay it, so I believe we should be armed with as much information as possible to help delay this condition.

Article from the Daily Mail below.

It's the news Popeye's been waiting for: Spinach could help fight off dementia (and carrots and apricots too)

• Researchers have discovered a link between low vitamin C, beta-carotene levels and dementia
• Antioxidant rich fruit and vegetables - such as spinach, carrots and apricots - could help fight dementia

It's welcome news for Popeye.

Spinach could help beat help beat dementia, according to a study.

Researchers have discovered a link between low vitamin C, beta-carotene levels and dementia.

So antioxidant rich fruit and vegetables - such as spinach, carrots and apricots - could help fight the disease’s devastating symptoms, their findings suggest.

Music to Popeye's ears: Antioxidant-rich fruit and vegetables - including spinach - could help fight the dementia symptoms

German scientists from the University of Ulm looked at the differences between 74 people with mild Alzheimer’s disease and 158 healthy subjects.

The participants, aged between 65 and 90, underwent neuropsychological testing, answered questions about their lifestyle and had their blood examined and their body mass index calculated.

The team, led by epidemiologist Professor Gabriele Nagel and neurologist Professor Christine von Arnim, found the serum-concentration of the antioxidants vitamin C and beta-carotene were significantly lower in patients with mild dementia than in control group.

There was no such difference between the groups in levels of other antioxidants including vitamin E, lycopene, coenzyme Q10.

Dr Nagel said although more studies were needed to confirm the results, the findings suggested fruits and vegetables could play a role in fighting the disease.

'Longitudinal studies with more participants are necessary to confirm the result that vitamin C and beta-carotene might prevent the onset and development of Alzheimer’s disease,' he said.

'Vitamin C can for example be found in citrus fruits; beta-carotene in carrots, spinach or apricots.'

Beneficial: Apricots and carrots could also prove beneficial in the fight against dementia

Alzheimer’s disease symptoms including forgetfulness, lack of orientation and cognitive decline and are caused by alterations in the brain including amyloid-beta-plaques, degeneration of fibrillae and a loss of synapses.

However, oxidative stress, which constrains the exploitation of oxygen in the human body, is also suspected to promote the development of the disease.

This led scientists to investigate whether antioxidants might protect against neurodegeneration.

The study - supported by the German Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of Baden-W|rttemberg and the European Union - was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

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JUST WHAT WE LOVE TO HEAR---CHOCOLATE CAN STAVE OFF DEMENTIA

Further to the last post, I saw this too in the Daily Mail today, another great reason to indulge in chocolate.

Could chocolate stave off dementia? Daily dose could help keep condition at bay

• In tests consuming cocoa every day helped improve mild cognitive impairment in the elderly
• Chocolate contains flavanols – chemicals associated with a decreased dementia risk

A daily dose of chocolate could help keep dementia and Alzheimer's at bay, a study suggests.
Researchers found that consuming cocoa every day helped improve mild cognitive impairment – a condition involving memory loss which can progress to dementia or  Alzheimer's – in elderly patients.
For the study, 90 people aged 70 or older  diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment were split into three groups of 30 and given either a high, medium or low dose of a  cocoa drink daily.

Beneficial? Researchers found that eating chocolate regularly could reduce the risk of developing dementia or Alzheimer's

The drink contained flavanols – chemicals associated with a decreased dementia risk which are found in a variety of foods, including cocoa products such as dark chocolate.

The participants' diet was restricted to  eliminate other sources of flavanols, such as tea or red wine.
Their cognitive function was examined using tests of factors including working memory and processing speed. 
Researchers found those who drank the high and medium doses daily had significantly better cognitive scores by the end of the eight-week study in a number of categories, including working memory.

Research: 90 people aged 70 or older diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment were split into three groups of 30 and given either a high, medium or low dose of a cocoa drink daily

Those given the higher doses of the flavanol drink improved far more than those given the lowest dose, the study, published in the journal Hypertension, found.  
Insulin resistance and blood pressure also decreased in those drinking high and medium doses of the flavanol drink. 
Doctor Giovambattista Desideri of the  University of L'Aquila in Italy, lead author of the study, said: 'This study provides encouraging evidence that consuming cocoa flavanols, as  a part of a calorie-controlled and nutritionally-balanced diet, could improve cognitive function.

Researchers found those who drank the high and medium doses daily had significantly better cognitive scores by the end of the eight-week study in a number of categories, including working memory

'Larger studies are needed to validate the findings, figure out how long the positive effects will last and determine the levels of cocoa flavanols required for benefit.'
Dr Laura Phipps, of Alzheimer's Research UK, said: 'Cocoa-based treatments for brain  function would likely have patients queuing out the door, but this small study of flavanols is not yet conclusive.'

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HELP STAVE OFF MENTAL DECLINE

Article from the Daily Mail and again evidence that eating red and purple fruits which are rich in flavonoids are beneficial to our health. These fruits are also rich in anti oxidants, which fight free radicals, free radicals cause ageing not just in looks but in every cell in the body, so it stands to reason this has to be beneficial to blood vessels and nerve cells in the brain. Strawberries as well as tasting lovely have a high Vitamin C content, one of the anti oxidant vitamins.

As we are all growing older more Dementia cases are going to come to light so anything that helps stave off the onset of this disease has to be good.

How to live to a ripe old age: Regularly eating strawberries and blueberries can stave off mental decline by more than two years

Berry good: Scientists said women could easily up the amount of strawberries and blueberries they ate

Eating blueberries and strawberries may stave off mental decline in later life, claim researchers.

They found brain ageing could be delayed by up to two and a half years in elderly women regularly eating high amounts of the berries.

The findings come from an ongoing study of nurses which involves only women, but may also apply to men.

Experts believe the benefits are derived from the high content of flavonoids in berry fruits, antioxidant compounds found in plants which can protect against a wide range of diseases.

The US research team used data from the Nurses’ Health Study, involving 121,700 female, registered nurses between the ages of 30 and 55 who completed health and lifestyle questionnaires beginning in 1976.

Since 1980 participants were surveyed every four years regarding their frequency of food consumption.

Between 1995 and 2001, cognitive function was measured in 16,010 women over the age of 70 years, at 2-year intervals, says a report in the Annals of Neurology journal. 

The findings suggest increased consumption of blueberries and strawberries slows cognitive decline in older women.

Those who had higher berry intake delayed cognitive aging by up to 2.5 years.

The authors warn they cannot rule out the possibility that women who eat more berries also have other healthy habits, such as exercising more, which may play a part in the overall findings.

However, they found a greater intake of anthocyanidins and total flavonoids was also associated with less cognitive deterioration.

Experts believe that stress and inflammation contribute to cognitive impairment and that increasing consumption of flavonoids could mitigate the harmful effects.

Brain cells are particularly sensitive to free radicals, destructive groups of atoms made as a by-product of metabolism that can damage cell membranes and DNA.

Experts said the study strengthens evidence that eating berries can stave off dementia

Antioxidants help to neutralise free radicals, Dr Elizabeth Devore with Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, said ‘Our study examined whether greater intake of berries could slow rates of cognitive decline.

‘We provide the first epidemiologic evidence that berries may slow progression of cognitive decline in elderly women.

‘Our findings have significant public health implications as increasing berry intake is a fairly simple dietary modification to test cognition protection in older adults.’ 

Derek Hill, CEO of IXICO and Professor of Medical Imaging Sciences, University College London, said: ‘Later this year, two major drug trials targeting the proteins in the brain associated with Alzheimer’s Disease will announce their results. Many experts fear these drugs will be added to the long list of potential dementia treatments that fail to demonstrate conclusively that they slow cognitive decline.

‘This latest research suggesting that a diet high on berries can slow cognitive decline in the elderly population is therefore especially welcome.

‘It is a large and well-designed study that significantly strengthens the evidence that changes to diet may be able to delay onset of dementia symptoms.

‘This suggests that we can take further steps to tackling the scourge of dementia in society while we await the arrival of effective new medicines.’ 

Dr Eric Karran, Director of Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: ‘Population studies like this can provide useful clues about the effects of lifestyle and diet on cognition, but we must be sensible when interpreting the results. The study suggests a link between eating berries and slower cognitive decline, but there could be many factors at play.

‘It is not possible to say whether the increased consumption of berries resulted in an increased, beneficial level of flavonoid antioxidants in the brain.

‘Further research will be needed to conclude whether antioxidants in berries are beneficial in the brain and we can’t assume that simply eating berries could protect against cognitive aging or dementia.

‘Previous evidence has shown that eating fruit as part of a healthy diet in midlife could help to reduce our risk of dementia and so eating a healthy balanced diet is something we should all be thinking about.

‘With 820,000 people in the UK living with dementia, there is an urgent need to understand more about how to reduce the risk.’ 

Carol Brayne, Professor of Public Health Medicine, University of Cambridge, said: ‘Broccoli, blueberries, Mediterranean diet, Sudoku.....it is very difficult indeed to be sure that this is not residual confounding as these kinds of dietary patterns are associated with many other positive attributes, which themselves are associated with healthier ageing.

‘Blueberries have been of interest for many years and it’s certainly worth further investigation, but for definitive evidence we have to await well designed trials as this is another observational study.’ 

The range of consumption in the study was women eating less than one serving of blueberries a month, between one and 3 servings a month and more than one serving a week, and from less than one serving of strawberries a week to more than two a week.

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HOW COCAINE ROTS YOUR BRAIN

I felt I should post this article from the Daily Mail as you know my blog here is all about well being and health and taking care of ourselves completely inside and out. Another reason if it helps dissuade someone not to take it then its worthwhile posting on here.

As the population in general are living longer there is a growing number of dementia cases, why accelerate the process further by taking drugs? In years to come I fear such cases will be found in much younger patients, so sad really as this could be prevented.

How cocaine rots your brain: Using Class A drug doubles the speed you lose your grey matter

• Drug use had biggest impact on the prefrontal and temporal cortex, which are associated with attention, decision making and self regulation 

People who are dependent on cocaine are putting their grey matter at risk, say scientists.

A study from the University of Cambridge has found abusing the Class A drug accelerates the brain ageing process.

Previous studies have shown that cocaine can affect the reward pathways in the brain and put strain on the heart. However, this is the first to link grey matter loss with the addiction.

Cocaine is a stimulant that can cause a powerful high followed by a comedown. Chronic use can cause uncontrolled aggression, insomnia and paranoia

Research leader Dr Karen Ersche said: 'As we age, we all lose grey matter. However, what we have seen is that chronic cocaine users lose grey matter at a significantly faster rate, which could be a sign of premature ageing. 

'Our findings therefore provide new insight into why the cognitive deficits typically seen in old age have frequently been observed in middle aged chronic users of cocaine.'

For the study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, researchers scanned the brains of 120 people with similar age, gender and verbal IQ.

Half of the individuals had a dependence on cocaine while the other 60 had no history of substance abuse disorders.

The researchers found that cocaine users lost about 3.08 ml brain volume per year, which is almost twice the rate of healthy volunteers (who only lost about 1.69 ml per year). 

The accelerated age-related decline in brain volume was most prominent in the prefrontal and temporal cortex, important regions of the brain which are associated with attention, decision-making, and self-regulation as well as memory.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that cocaine is used by up to 21 million people around the world. More than one million people are believed to take the Class A drug in the UK - the highest rate in Europe.

Dr Ersche said: 'Our findings clearly highlight the need for preventative strategies to address the risk of premature ageing associated with cocaine abuse. 

'Young people taking cocaine today need to be educated about the long-term risk of ageing prematurely.'

The concern of accelerated ageing is not limited to young people but also affects older adults who have been abusing drugs such as cocaine since early adulthood.

Dr Ersche added: 'Our findings shed light on the largely neglected problem of the growing number of older drug users, whose needs are not so well catered for in drug treatment services. It is timely for heath care providers to understand and recognise the needs of older drug users in order to design and administer age-appropriate treatments.'

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