There is no doubt that one of the most significant health care challenges in today’s society is the explosive growth of the incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s.
The number of Canadians with dementia is rising sharply.
As of today, there are over half a million Canadians living with dementia – plus about 25,000 new cases diagnosed every year. By 2031, that number is expected to rise to 937,000, an increase of 66 per cent.
In the United States, there are an estimated 5.3 million Americans of all ages who have Alzheimer’s disease.
One of the best approaches to dealing with Alzheimer’s is to prevent it: lifestyle choices of course play a major role in whether an individual will develop this devastating disease.
One of the key issues this brings up is the fact that most in the general population lack the knowledge to lead an optimal healthy lifestyle, and it is hard for individuals to consider that their lifestyle choices will affect their quality of life decades from now (a good example being autoimmune conditions: on average, autoimmune conditions develop for thirty five years before any symptoms start presenting).
In recent years, there has been much talk of the encouraging results seen for patients following the Bredesen protocol – a therapeutic program being used to reverse cognitive decline. As with most neurodegenerative conditions, a comprehensive strategy is needed to address all aspects of health and lifestyle in order to be effective. This includes addressing sleep, stress, diet, exercise, hormonal modulation, cardiovascular health, blood sugar/insulin, inflammation, gut health, neurotransmitters, and heavy metals.
This makes sense that treatment needs to be multi-faceted as research tells us that Alzheimer’s disease appears to be the consequence of several convergent factors including oxidative stress, inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and accumulation of toxic protein aggregates in and around neurons (Luan 2012; Teng 2012; Rosales-Corral 2012; Wang 2007; Fonte 2011; Ittner 2011). Emerging, intriguing research implicates chronic infection with several pathogenic organisms in the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease as well (Miklossy 2011). Moreover, age-related changes such as declining hormone levels and vascular dysfunction are thought to contribute to some aspects of Alzheimer’s disease (Vest 2012; Barron 2012; Baloyannis 2012).
If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease and seeking help in navigating the many therapeutic options available naturopathically, get started on the journey back to health today, by contacting the office today or booking a consultation online.