Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating illness, affecting an estimated 5.2 million Americans, according to 2013 statistics. It’s believed to be the third leading cause of death in the US, following only heart disease and cancer. It’s shockingly prevalent, with one in nine seniors over the age of 65 suffering from this severe form of dementia. While there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s, research is amassing every day. And recently, scientists have begun identifying connections between Alzheimer’s and diabetes.

We’ve written about this in the past. But new research suggests it isn’t just Alzheimer’s that’s linked to diabetes. Less severe forms of dementia also could be a complication of diabetes.

So what’s the connection? Why would diabetes be such a major contributor to memory loss?

You may know that people develop type-2 diabetes when the pancreas doesn’t produce enough of the hormone insulin or the body can’t use insulin properly to process sugar. But you may not know that the brain also makes insulin. When the brain doesn’t make enough, it affects the whole body, just like the pancreas does. In fact, one of the most severe complications of diabetes is blindness.
The eyes are so directly connected to the brain that many in the medical community believe they are an extension of the brain.

The impact of diabetes on your eyes is now gaining even more attention. One group of researchers in India hypothesized that the eye disease glaucoma is actually diabetes of the brain. The group made the hypothesis based on the remarkable similarities between glaucoma and diabetes. Glaucoma and diabetes have many similar characteristics, including various molecular mechanisms, the involvement of insulin, and similar treatments that work on both illnesses.

With Alzheimer’s disease already considered diabetes type-3, we’re now seeing that eye disease and brain disease are related. Other researchers are now calling Alzheimer’s disease “cerebral glaucoma.” We’re looking at a very real connection between diabetes, glaucoma, and Alzheimer’s. So let’s look at this connection in more depth.

Scientists have found that diabetes and brain insulin resistance are prevalent among Alzheimer’s sufferers. The first person to recognize this connection was a neuropathologist from Rhode Island Hospital, Suzanne M. de la Monte. Dr. de la Monte is a professor of pathology at Brown Medical School, and she led a study that found that when insulin production in the brain decreases, the brain’s cells start to deteriorate. It won’t surprise you to learn that deteriorating brain cells are an early indicator of Alzheimer’s disease. It’s a similar deterioration that occurs in retinal ganglion cells, which causes glaucoma.

Other researchers in Australia found a connection between brain volume loss and type-2 diabetes. They found that the brain volumes of those with type-2 diabetes reduced by half compared with those whose blood sugar levels were normal. In particular, the decreases were in the areas of the brain that control decision-making and long-term memory.

But it’s not just this severe form of dementia that diabetes can cause. It also can cause less severe forms of dementia. A study out of Taipei, Taiwan made this important discovery. Researchers from the National Taiwan University College of Public Health, Cathay General Hospital, and Fu Jen Catholic University said, “Our research is the first nationwide study to examine how the severity and progression of diabetes is related to dementia diagnosis rates in an older population. We found that as diabetes progresses and an individual experiences more complications from the disease, the risk of dementia rises as well.”

To conduct the study, the researchers used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database’s records dating back to 1999. Through that research, they identified 431,178 people over the age of 50 with newly diagnosed diabetes. Then the researchers looked to see how many of these were either admitted to a hospital or had at least three outpatient medical visits for dementia after their diabetes diagnosis. Here’s what they found. Among the people in the study (all of whom had diabetes), 26,856 of them were later diagnosed with dementia. While 6.2% of the total may seem small, the risk of developing dementia was higher among people who had a high score on the Diabetes Complications Severity Index than for those who had a low score. That means that those people who don’t control their diabetes well are far more likely to develop dementia.

There is definitely a connection between Alzheimer’s disease and type-2 diabetes. Dr. de la Monte says, “Alzheimer’s disease and type-2 diabetes affect different parts of the body, but they are manifestations of the same disease.” This means we may be able to treat Alzheimer’s – and glaucoma – the same way we do diabetes. And in fact, an anti-diabetic drug is beginning to show some promise. The FDA has approved this drug, called Byetta or Bydureon. It’s a synthetic form of exendin-4, which is a hormone found (believe it or not) in the saliva of the Gila monster lizard. One study used exendin-4 to treat mice who had Alzheimer’s disease, and the researchers saw noticeable improvements in the mice’s cognitive function.

But you don’t need to use manufactured lizard spit to control your blood sugar. There’s a better way. First, take what we already know about preventing diabetes to heart: you must eat a healthful diet and exercise. Regular exercise will help increase blood flow to your brain and increase insulin responsiveness in your brain and your pancreas. Eating a diet high in vegetables, lean protein, whole grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and legumes and low in sugar will help your blood sugar levels stay where they should be.

Second, rather than turning to expensive pharmaceuticals that may have dangerous side effects, give curcumin a try. Curcumin is a chemical that occurs naturally in turmeric. It has anti-inflammatory properties, and it helps regulate blood sugar, so it’s a great weapon in the fight against both diabetes and Alzheimer’s.

Since curcumin is a natural substance, pharmaceutical companies can’t patent it. Instead, they’re working on creating it in synthetic form. But there’s no need to wait for them to develop an over-priced drug. You can take curcumin as a supplement. If you do, one of the best ways to take it is in the form of Meriva®, which is 20 times stronger than regular curcumin. It’s also found in the anti-inflammatory formula Reduloxin, which you can order by calling 800-791-3395.

However, there’s something you need to take along with the Reduloxin to really keep your blood sugar under control. I recently helped Advanced Bionutritionals develop Advanced Blood Sugar Formula for this very purpose. This supplement contains chromium, Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, and other nutrients to get your blood sugar back in shape.

More than 20 years ago, I began noticing that many of my patients over 50 complained of poor memory. Most of them were using self-prescribed herbs and nutrients and they reported that they helped a little. Around the same time, I was at a medical conference and there was an older neurologist from Johns Hopkins presenting. I approached him after his talk and asked him about this memory phenomena and what he thought about it. “Sugar,” he said, “sugar.”

He explained to me that it wasn’t really being studied, but he felt that, as we age, our ability to handle and metabolize sugar – not only sugar from carbohydrates but also the sugars that are eventually created from proteins as well, diminishes. This once seamless process becomes deficient and chaotic as we age.

I came home from the conference and I obsessively began testing the blood sugar levels of all of my patients with poor memory. To my surprise, about 85% of them were high or high normal. They were not diabetic, but were in the high normal to pre-diabetic zone.

At this point I began prescribing nutrients and herbs to be taken twice daily for two to three months. Almost all of them reported that they felt more “even” or “calm,” had more energy and thought their memory was improving. This does not a study make. I tell this story because I have watched for 20 years how lowering blood sugar that was headed in a high direction can improve many issues: mood, memory, weight, energy, etc.

In the United States our communal blood sugar in people over 45 is on the rise. Research is showing that our after-meal blood sugar spikes are more damaging than elevated fasting blood sugar. Did you know that our risk for a heart attack increases by 58% for every 21 mg/dL rise in after-meal blood sugar?

So, as we age, it’s even more important to keep our blood sugar down. If you have a high-normal fasting blood sugar and hgbA1c, you may want to try Advanced Blood Sugar Formula. This formula puts the “organization” back into your blood sugar metabolism. It contains the remarkable ingredient berberine, which stops blood sugar spikes before they start. How? Berberine helps to slow down carbohydrate digestion so sugars don’t hit your system too quickly. It also sends signals to your digestion so that your pancreas produces the right amount of insulin – like Goldilocks – not too much and not too little.

In addition, the formula contains gymnema. Gymnema sylvestre is an Indian herb known as “the sugar destroyer.” There have been over 29 studies showing that gymnema improves blood sugar and supports healthy insulin function. What’s remarkable about the gymnema used in Advanced Blood Sugar Formula is that it uses a concentrate of 16:1 extract that is standardized to an extraordinary 75% gymnemic acid. It is hard to find a supplement at the health food store or online that’s up to 75 times more potent than dried gymnema leaf. These herbs combined with chromium and magnesium help to improve blood sugar levels quickly.

Just take one to two tablets in the evening – and see if it improves your mental sharpness. Like all supplements, give it two or three months to work. You can order this formula by calling 800-791-3395. Be sure to give them special offer code WH8315 when ordering.

The thought of developing diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, or glaucoma can be scary. But with these new discoveries, we’re more empowered than ever to take steps to prevent it. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Start now!

Faiq, Muneeb A., Rima Dada, Daman Saluja, and Tanuj Dada. “Glaucoma – Diabetes of the brain: A radical hypothesis about its nature and pathogenesis,” Medical Hypotheses, February 17, 2014.

Wei-Che Chiu, MD, PhD et al. Progess of Diabetic Severity and Risk of Dementia. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, July 2015 DOI: 10.1210/jc.2015-1677

How Heartburn Can Turn Into a Heart Attack

If you’re one of the more than 20 million Americans taking a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) such as Prilosec to treat heartburn, you’re probably experiencing some short-term relief. Now, heartburn is a bit of a misnomer, since the pain you’re feeling is a result of stomach acid entering the esophagus. But unfortunately, it turns out that heartburn drugs may be more appropriately named than their makers intended—a new study conducted at the Stanford University School of Medicine has found that taking these drugs can put your heart at risk in the future.

PPIs are commonly prescribed in part because doctors believe them to be safe. In fact, they are considered so safe that they’re now available over the counter. This new study suggests it may be time to reevaluate those assumptions. Lead study author Nigam Shah has been a pioneer of using data-mining techniques to identify connections between medical phenomena by examining databases of electronic health records. This technique lets him identify associations—though not necessarily causations—between infinite combinations of drugs and patient symptoms.

For this particular study, Shah mined data from the records of 297,000 heartburn patients from two health-record databases. What Shah and his team of researchers found was shocking. Heartburn sufferers who were prescribed PPIs or reported using them had a 16–21% increased risk of heart attack — even if they were young and healthy.

To see if this connection held up elsewhere, Shah examined an ongoing prospective, longitudinal study of patients who have experienced chest pain, shortness of breath, or abnormal stress-test results. Patients participating in this study reported whether or not they use PPIs. If they do, Shah found that their risk of experiencing a heart attack, cardiac arrest, or stroke more than doubles.

In 2013, John Cooke, MD, PhD, published a study in Circulation suggesting the PPIs cause biochemical reactions that lower nitric oxide levels in blood vessel tissues, which could explain why PPIs increase risk even in otherwise-healthy patients. Shah explained that in their study, “We looked at cardiovascular risk for different PPI drugs, and we found that the degree to which the use of any particular PPI was associated with a subsequent heart attack mirrors the degree to which the drug inhibits nitric oxide in the vasculature.”

Shah notes that his study doesn’t conclusively prove a causal link between PPIs and heart attacks, as more research needs to be done to investigate the findings. But he does think doctors should be far more cautious about prescribing these medications—and firmer in instructing patients to stick to the recommended periods of use, as people tend to take them for much longer than they should.

Fortunately, there’s a way you can treat heartburn without putting your heart at risk. And not only will this method relieve your heartburn, it will give you a number of other benefits as well, from improving your sleep to supporting your immune system to preventing cancer. This wonder drug isn’t a drug at all—it’s melatonin! If you’re skeptical, let’s see how it stacks up against the pharmaceuticals.

In a study of 350 people struggling with GERD, doctors gave half of the patients 6 mg of melatonin. They gave the other group the maximum dose, 20 mg, of omeprazole, which is the generic form of Prilosec.

Omeprazole worked nearly two-thirds of the time. In fact, after 40 days, 65.7% of the patients weren’t experiencing symptoms anymore. A few had some side effects: 1% had a persistent headache, 4% had diarrhea, and 1.7% ended up with high blood pressure.

Two-thirds sounds like decent results. Sure, there were some side effects, but that seems to be a risk you take with any drug. So how did melatonin compare? First of all, there were no side effects. But better than that, every single one of the patients was symptom free. That’s right—melatonin had a 100% success rate! The researchers were so impressed that they had the unfortunate third of patients who didn’t experience relief from omeprazole give melatonin a try too. And sure enough, every single one of them recovered.

Did you know that cells in your intestinal tract also make melatonin, and the sun doesn’t affect this production? As you eat, your intestines release melatonin, which helps you avoid ulcers, keeps your stomach from producing too much acid, and wards off infections in your intestines. It also keeps stomach acid from traveling up the esophagus, which causes heartburn. So if your intestines aren’t producing sufficient melatonin, you may begin experiencing these issues. Supplementing with 3-6 mg can help. You may experience some drowsiness, but you certainly won’t increase your risk of heart attacks. So talk to your doctor right away about switching to melatonin.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20082715

http://local12.com/m/news/features/top-stories/stories/Study-Heartburn-drugs-could-increase-heart-attack-risk-150283.shtml#.VYGlHVL3aJI.

Could This Fiber-Rich Food Provide Relief for Psoriasis and Other Inflammatory Skin Diseases?

If you haven't thought much about celery since you ate it ants-on-a-log style with peanut butter and raisins as a child or as part of a fad diet years ago, you may want to consider adding it back into your diet. It turns out this humble veggie is actually a powerhouse of nutritional benefits. New studies are popping up regularly to highlight just how beneficial this crunchy snack really is for your skin.

You probably know that celery is high in fiber, so it can help keep your digestive system running smoothly. And you probably also know that it's an extremely low-calorie food (just 16 calories in an entire cup), so it can be a good way to add bulk to your diet and help you feel fuller if you're trying to lose weight. But you may be surprised to find out that celery can actually help your skin look better too.

In fact, celery contains a powerful flavonoid called luteolin. Luteolin has anti-inflammatory properties, and a study published last year in PLoS One found that luteolin could help provide relief for people suffering from psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases.

Another study, published in Food & Function in January 2014 isolated a flavonoid from celery leaves (which are also edible) and found that it had powerful antioxidant properties. It was an especially good scavenger, meaning it can help mop up the free radicals that contribute to aging throughout our bodies and in our skin.

And that's not the only antioxidant celery offers. Celery is full of vitamin C, as well as other, less-pronounceable antioxidants, such as lunularin, bergapten, psoralen, quercetin, and apigenin. These antioxidants work together to help keep our cells safe and healthy. The nutrients in celery also work together to keep inflammation low in our bodies, which helps keep our skin healthy and glowing.

You can enjoy celery raw, but if you'd like to soften it by cooking it, steaming is your best choice. Studies have shown that boiling or blanching celery decreases its antioxidant content by 38-41%. Steaming, by contrast, results in a loss of only 1-7% of these benefits even after 10 minutes. Store fresh celery in the refrigerator for no more than 5 to 7 days; after that, it begins to lose its phenolic antioxidants.

When you're shopping for celery, keep in mind that celery has been included in the "Dirty Dozen" list of the fruits and vegetables coated with the most pesticides. Whenever possible, try to choose organic for your celery so you're not wasting the efforts of the antioxidants by putting them to use mopping up the pesticides you've consumed along with them.

Celery makes a great snack, or you can chop it up and add it to salad and soups. Look for opportunities to incorporate it into your diet — your skin will thank you!

Sources: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=14

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24232123

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24587411

Nutrition Detective

The Easy Way to Cut the Calorie Content of Rice by Up to 50%

If you’ve been trying to stick with a low-carb diet or you’re just watching your calorie intake in general, you’ve probably been staying away from rice. Since rice clocks in at about 240 calories a cup, that’s generally a good idea. But what if you could eat the same amount of this filling food and absorb only 40-50% of those calories? Believe it or not, you can. You just have to make one simple adjustment to the way you cook it.

You may know that rice is a starchy carbohydrate. Starch comes in two forms, digestible and indigestible. Your small intestine breaks down digestible starch, turning it into sugar and sending it out to the bloodstream. But if you don’t use all the sugar, your body stores it as fat. Indigestible, or resistant, starch just passes right on through the body. It’s not absorbed at all.

Researchers at the College of Chemical Sciences in Sri Lanka were concerned about growing rates of obesity in developing countries. Rice is often a staple food in these countries. So the researchers wondered if there was a way to make it less likely that people consuming lots of rice would absorb and store so many extra calories. They speculated that there might be a way to turn digestible starch into resistant starch.

After experimenting with a number of different types of rice, they discovered that this is indeed possible. And you might be surprised to learn that their method involved adding oil — more calories — to the rice. But when oil collides with starch, it makes the starch resistant to digestive enzymes. Our bodies can’t break the starch down easily, and it passes through the body.

There’s one catch though. In order for this process to work, the rice and oil need to cool down. All the magic happens during the gelatinization process. Once the process is complete, it’s fine to heat the rice back up. It’s a little extra work, but I think cutting the calories in half is worth a little advanced planning. I gave this method a try, and I thought the reheated rice tasted just fine.

If you want to enjoy a side of rice without worrying about so many calories, all you have to do is add a teaspoon of coconut oil to boiling water. Add half a cup of rice and either simmer it for 40 minutes or boil it for 20-25 minutes. Then refrigerate it for at least 12 hours. You can make up a batch in the morning for dinner or just prep some for the next night while you’re making tonight’s dinner. It really couldn’t be easier to cut your calories and still enjoy your rice!

Source:

http://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2015/march/new-low-calorie-rice-could-help-cut-rising-obesity-rates.html.

LETTERS

Q: I was thinking about taking your Advanced Liver Support. One of the ingredients is licorice root. Is this recommended for those with hypertension? – Stephanie, via email

Dear Stephanie,

Advanced Liver Support is a great product, but it does contain 250 mg of licorice root per capsule and the recommended dose is four capsules (1000 mg). Without knowing the details of your hypertension, I can’t really tell you if this will be a problem or not. For most people, it would take 2 oz of licorice per day for a week to cause a problem. That 2 oz is equivalent to 56 grams (56,000 mg). This product doesn’t contain anywhere near that amount. So it should be fine for most.

But until I know your details, it would be best to try something else. For example, find a good milk thistle extract at your local health food store and take it for a month. Then consider PhosChol (800-791-3395). PhosChol is an exceptionally high quality phosphatidylcholine. It not only benefits the liver, but also offers significant health advantages to improving neurological and cardiovascular health.

If your hypertension is accompanied with slightly elevated fasting blood sugar, you may want to consider Advanced Blood Sugar Formula (800-791-3395). This formula has a regulating influence on the liver and will offer many of the benefits found in Advanced Liver Support without having to experiment with the licorice root.

Q. I am an 86-year-old female and I had a hysterectomy at the age of 39. I was on Premarin for approximately 20 years. I’ve been invaded by skin tags. My mother had them, also. The ones that cause me the most discomfort are located under my breast, in my arm pits, and along my waist line. What causes them? And what can I do to minimize their recurrence once I have them removed. – Socorro A., El Paso, TX

Dear Socorro,

I’m very familiar with skin tags. Several years ago, I suddenly experienced them on my neck. And we’re not alone – about 46% of people have skin tags. My skin tags were not only unsightly, but like the ones in your arm pits and under your breast, were irritated with clothing.

Most dermatologists, when asked, won’t give much of an answer as to why we get these. They will tell you it’s genetics. But recently researchers are correlating it with excess sugar in the blood, pre-diabetes, and diabetes.

My suggestion is to find out about your blood sugar. Ask your doctor to run an HgbA1c test. If it’s elevated, consider deleting all simple sugar from your diet and go easy on fruit (no more than two servings a day). If your sugar is high, consider Advanced Blood Sugar Formula (800-791-3395). Taking two in the evening for a couple of months should bring your sugar down and put you on track.

In addition, you would want to have them removed. I found cryotherapy (liquid nitrogen) to be the most effective removal treatment for me. Other possibilities include cauterization and excision. Tag Away, which is available on the Internet, also can be effective.