Can Alzheimer’s And Dementia Be Prevented Or Reversed?
Cici Zerbe, a retired educator and a lifelong runner, was enjoying life in Novato, California, with her large family when a neurologist diagnosed her with mild cognitive impairment and dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease. Zerbe was devastated. Both she and her husband were afraid that she would end up like her mother and grandmother, who both suffered from dementia.
In 2019, Zerbe was recruited to join a study conducted by Dr. Dean Ornish, a physician, researcher, and clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Ornish, who is also the president and founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California, had found through previous studies that intensive lifestyle changes can reverse heart disease in some patients. So, he wanted to determine whether lifestyle changes could reverse the progression of mild cognitive impairment or early dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Ornish’s lifestyle medicine program included:
- Eating a plant-based diet
- Getting moderate exercise
- Using meditation or yoga to reduce stress
- Increasing social support with family, friends, or support groups
Nearly five years later, Zerbe reports that the program has turned her life around. In an interview with CNN, Zerbe credited meditation, exercise, and a change in diet as factors that helped reverse the Alzheimer’s symptoms. Zerbe said her favorite food used to be veal cutlets, but she hasn’t had one in five years.
“I think she’s doing very well,” Zerbe’s husband told CNN. “I was afraid by this time she would be in a home or something.”
Dr. Ornish and other researchers are conducting studies on whether Alzheimer’s disease, which affects nearly seven million Americans, can be prevented or reversed. Dr. Ornish, who has watched members of his family die from Alzheimer’s, wants the results of his study to give hope to people receiving a diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
“I’m not about false hope, and I’m not saying that everyone will get better,” he told CNN. “I’m here to empower people with the knowledge that if you do change, there is a reasonably good chance that you may slow the progression of the disease and often improve it.”
Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, is a progressive brain disorder that causes memory loss and affects thinking skills and behavior. In 2021, Alzheimer’s was the fifth-leading cause of death among people aged 65 and older, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Not only are scientists studying the causes of Alzheimer’s, but they are also looking for early warning signs of the disease, known as “biomarkers,” in an effort to slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s. For instance, in a study conducted with mice, scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s (UIUC) School of Molecular and Cellular Biology found that an increase in the levels of a protein called PSD-95 was associated with seizures that occur in the early phase of Alzheimer’s.
The UIUC investigators made this discovery as they examined an earlier phase of the mouse’s life than previously studied, a period before any other markers or abnormalities were known to occur.
“We were thinking, if we can catch anything that is happening early enough, maybe we can find a way to diagnose the disease earlier or slow down the progression,” Nien-Pei Tsai, the study’s leader and a professor of molecular and integrative physiology, said in a news release. “We know that Alzheimer’s is irreversible. But if we can slow down the progression or even delay the onset of the disease, we can improve the quality of life for patients.”
Inherited Gene Increases The Risk of Developing Alzheimer’s
Researchers have discovered that a certain gene called apolipoprotein4 (APOE4) elevates an individual’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. What’s more, the risk increases significantly when individuals inherit the APOE4 gene from both parents.
Simon Nicholls, a 55-year-old entrepreneur, was worried about developing Alzheimer’s since he carries two copies of the APOE4, one from each parent. In addition, Nicholls said his mother died in her 70s from what the family believes was Alzheimer’s. Nicholls knew that he needed to do whatever it took to prevent this from happening to him.
“I have a 3-year-old son and an 8-year-old son,” Nicholls told CNN. “It’s really important for me, as I get older, to try and be there for them in the future.”
Like Zerbe, Nicholls enrolled in a clinical trial involving intensive lifestyle changes, but this one was conducted by Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of research at the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases in Boca Raton, Florida. As part of the clinical trial, Nicholls followed changes recommended by Dr. Isaacson, which included eating plant-based foods, intensifying his exercise routine, reducing stress, and improving his sleep hygiene with a more regular sleep schedule.
Within nine weeks, Nicholls had lost 21 pounds (of which 80 percent was fat) and gained muscle mass, all of which lowered his fasting blood sugar levels, ending his progression toward diabetes. In addition, a few changes to his cholesterol medications improved his cholesterol levels. Within 14 months, the blood biomarkers that are signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in Nicholls’ brain had all but disappeared.
“I had to catch my breath. It was a complete shock: The blood tests on his brain had normalized,” Dr. Isaacson told CNN. He was also surprised at Nicholls’ appearance.
“When I first saw Simon, he had a bit of a middle, like most guys in their 50s,” Dr. Isaacson said. “When I saw him at nine weeks, I did a double take. He was totally buff, ripped even.”
Drs. Ornish and Isaacson, Nicholls, and Zerbe were featured on The Whole Story, a CNN documentary focusing on the latest medical research that shows Alzheimer’s disease symptoms can be prevented, slowed, and potentially even reversed. The documentary was hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, a practicing neurosurgeon and CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, who said he has a family history of Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Gupta also underwent testing by Dr. Isaacson. Based on some of the findings, Dr. Isaacson described Dr. Gupta as a “walking modifiable risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease,” which means he is not at an increased risk for the disease. However, Dr. Isaacson recommended Dr. Gupta go on a plant-based diet, get exercise, and track the fluctuations in his blood sugar.
What’s most important to a person with Alzheimer’s and their family is not blood or cognitive tests, but improvement in daily life, according to John Morris, distinguished professor of neurology and co-director of the Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at Washington University School of Medicine.
“What matters to the patient in the family is whether they’re able to do the things they normally do,” Morris told CNN. “If they couldn’t read and now, they can read, that’s great. That’s an outstanding achievement.”
Source Links:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/16/health/video/gupta-alzheimers-reversed-patient-digvid
https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/07/health/alzheimers-dementia-ornish-lifestyle-wellness/index.html
https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/facts-figures
https://news.illinois.edu/view/6367/1176823299
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/06/health/alzheimers-apoe4-gene-risk/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/18/health/alzheimers-blood-brain-improvement-wellness/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/16/health/video/dr-gupta-alzheimers-test-result
