Cognitive Reawakening - 'cause decline ain't an option

09/27/2023

It's Which One Wednesday! 🥳

09/22/2023

09/21/2023

An Eating Plan for Brain Health

(Episode 4 of 4) Doctor Dale Bredesen’s Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age, “The End of Alzheimer’s Program” - (Part 2: The Protocol & KetoFLEX 12/3)

Dr. Bredesen’s book, “The End of Alzheimer’s Program,” turned my life around by revealing the astounding fact that cognitive decline did not necessarily need to end with Alzheimer’s. In fact, there are absolutely things we can do to slow down, or even reverse the decline. His protocol addresses 7 aspects of lifestyle that are its foundational strategies:

🌟 Nutrition - Eat a nutrient-dense diet that emphasizes colorful, non-starchy vegetables, adequate protein and generous healthy fats.

🌟 Movement - This increases cerebral blood flow and brain-derived-neurotrophic factor (BDNF), improves oxygenation and overall brain and body physiology in numerous ways.

🌟 Sleep - Restorative sleep is vital for memory consolidation and to clear cerebral toxins, including amyloid plaque. It also promotes metabolic health, reduces inflammation, and up-regulates the immune system.

🌟 Stress Reduction - Stress is associated with inflammation and decreased neural regeneration. This protocol encourages the development of stress management habits such as mindfulness, meditation, breathing techniques, yoga, tai chi or others you prefer.

🌟 Brain Stimulation - Stimulate neuronal growth by staying mentally and socially active.

🌟 Detoxification - Ensure that the air you breathe, the water you drink, the home you live in, the food you eat, and the toiletries, cosmetics, and cleaning supplies that you use are as toxin-free as possible.

🌟 Supplementation - This is important if you’re suffering from a nutritional deficiency that affects your cognitive health.

The program’s title, KetoFLEX 12/3, refers to its design meant to trigger and maintain metabolic flexibility. If you've read my earlier posts in this series, you may remember that cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s are often linked with an inability to effectively use glucose as brain fuel. It’s important to help our bodies regain the ability to use ketones when this happens.

👉 “Keto” refers to these Ketones. Each of the strategies above encourages their formation, which the brain can easily use as alternate fuel.

👉 "FLEX” refers to metabolic flexibility; the ability to use either glucose or ketones as fuel. The goal is to regain this state and optimize the brain’s fuel supply.

👉 “12/3” refers to the fasting period that begins at least 3 hours before bedtime and lasts for a total of at least 12 hours daily. This encourages autophagy, the vital cellular “housekeeping” that occurs as your body cleans out damaged cells to recreate newer ones.

Each of these strategies alone will promote brain healing and encourage the growth of new neurons and synaptic connections. When practiced together, however, they are particularly powerful and make a significant difference in my memory, brain fog, and energy. Dr. Bredesen’s book is a detailed, step-by-step guide to implementing and succeeding in each of these areas (link in the comments). My own copy is marked up and well-loved. 💖

Sources:

“The Bredesen Seven”
https://www.apollohealthco.com/the-bredesen-seven/

“Not Your Daddy’s Keto”
https://www.apollohealthco.com/not-your-daddys-keto/

“The End of Alzheimer’s Program: The First Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age,” by Dale Bredesen, MD

09/20/2023

It's Which One Wednesday! 🥳
I vary between an A and a D. 😁

09/18/2023

An Eating Plan for Brain Health

(Episode 4 of 4) Dr. Dale Bredesen’s Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age, “The End of Alzheimer’s Program” - (Part 1: A Little Background)

A year and a half ago, I began listening to health podcasts on the way to and from work. 🎙

I had been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment a few months before (May, 2021), and the decline was accelerating. My primary care had no answers, but suggested I must be depressed and put me on medication. Other worrisome health issues were beginning to crop up. My digestion was off… even after years on an almost stellar, whole foods diet. There were frequent UTIs and sinus infections that were hard to shake, and resulted in antibiotics at least twice a year.*

In fall of 2021, I was finally in a position to make an appointment with a local functional practitioner. She was the first to suggest there was more going on than depression, and we began looking for answers. It was a slow and expensive process of testing, waiting for results, waiting for another appointment to review them, getting more testing…

In early 2022, I began having occasional episodes of dizziness and lightheadedness. One day, while experiencing an unusual numbness on one side of my face, I went to the hospital to be examined. The diagnosis was transient ischemic attack (TIA).** Scared and confused, the ER nurse explained that I would need to stay on aspirin and a statin for the rest of my life. She was trying to be kind, but the statin made my cognition 10-times worse. It wasn’t long before depression's self-fulfilling prophecy actually did kick in.

Desperate for answers, I began listening to health podcasts and stumbled upon, “The Doctor’s Farmacy” with Dr Mark Hyman. That’s where I first heard of Dr Dale Bredesen’s work with Alzheimer’s, and my life and perspective turned around. That episode, “Surviving Alzheimer’s: A Functional Medicine Approach to Prevention and Reversal,” (The link to this podcast is below) showed me that cognitive decline was not necessarily the fast track to Alzheimer’s, that there was a good chance of an underlying cause that was driving my decline, and that there were things I could do to slow down or reverse it.

I picked up 2 copies of Dr Bredesen’s book, “The End of Alxheimer’s Program; The First Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age;” one for myself and one for my functional practitioner. (Link in the comments) She and I referenced his test recommendations and target values AND we began finding answers.*** There’s no doubt that NOT ONE SINGLE DIAGNOSIS WOULD HAVE EVER BEEN MADE BY MY PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN.

They weren’t even looking…

* As an aside, all of the symptoms I had begun having; the dizziness, lightheadedness, severe hot flashes, and frequent, persistent UTIs and sinus infections can be specifically explained by the lead, mercury, mold biotoxin illness, Lyme, Bartonella and mast cell activation syndrome that have since been diagnosed. There are direct connections I’d be happy to share if you’re interested.

** As another aside, my cholesterol ratios are very good, so I was always skeptical about the TIA diagnosis. This suspicion was confirmed by the neurologist I spoke to this spring. I stopped taking the statin after about 10 months, and the cognitive relief was IMMEDIATE.

*** I do believe that this practitioner would have eventually found the underlying causes, or would have referred me to someone who could. She was on the right track. There is no doubt, however, that Dale Bredesen’s book sped up the process.

This topic will be continued In an upcoming post, I’ll provide a brief overview of Dale Bredesen's Protocol, its goals, and its underlying principles; including KetoFLEX 12/3 which is the diet that is making the most difference in my recovery.

Source:

Surviving Alzheimer’s: A Functional Medicine Approach To Prevention And Reversal

If you had thirty-six holes in your roof and only patched three of them, you’d still have a very leaky roof. This is how we have to think about brain […]

09/15/2023

An Eating Plan for Brain Health 🥑

(Episode 3 of 4) The Magic of Ketones, Part 2

🛑 You'll get the most out of this post by reading the previous one. There, I introduce the concept that ketone bodies produced from fat burning can be used for energy when glucose is unavailable or difficult to access.

But, how DO we help our bodies make this transition? 🤔

🌟 A book that has helped me tremendously is, “The End of Alxheimer’s Program; The First Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age,” by Dale E. Bredesen, MD. If you have any concerns at all about your cognition, it’s a very valuable resource to have on your shelf.

🔑 The key lies in our diet. By consuming fewer carbs and more healthy fats, we can induce a state called 'ketosis', where our bodies predominantly burn fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates. As I mentioned in the previous post, the burning of fat produces ketones, and ketones are readily accessible to the brain even if glucose is not.

An additional way to encourage ketosis is by fasting; even a mild fast. After about 12-16 hours, your body will have used up most of its glucose and glycogen stores (glycogen is the storage form of glucose). Once these are depleted, your body begins breaking down stored fat into molecules called fatty acids. Some of these fatty acids are further converted into ketone bodies which serve as the new source of energy.

Sometimes, achieving actual ketosis can be difficult. Both stress and lack of sleep raise cortisol, and cortisol increases blood sugar levels and reduces ketone production. There’s also a fine line between consuming the protein your body needs to preserve muscle mass and fuel red blood cells… and lowering protein intake enough to induce ketosis. 🙃

This is something to be especially careful about, particularly as we age. If you’ve decreased protein levels, It’s important to increase muscle-building exercises such as resistance training and overall body movement. I’ve included a wonderful routine for seniors and beginners in the sources section below. You can easily pick up a resistance band through amazon.

It’s almost impossible to KNOW if your body is in ketosis without a special breath or blood monitor, but you’ll probably begin to notice positive changes after about a week. Clearer thinking and concentration are common. Your blood sugar might begin dropping, and you may release some weight. An increase in energy is typical as well. 🤗

Since the beginning of this year (2023), I’ve made a significant (not perfect) effort to maintain a low carb diet and follow a fasting schedule. In those periods of time when I’m most successful, I absolutely reap the benefits of clearer thinking, better memory and word retrieval, and increased energy. 💖

I’ll tell you about it in part 4 of this series.

Sources:

“Ketosis”
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/24003-ketosis

“30 MIN RESISTANCE BAND WORKOUT for Beginners, Seniors;
Elastic Exercise Band Workout”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXCgbas25gw

09/14/2023

An Eating Plan for Brain Health 🥑

(Epidode 3 of 4) The Magic of Ketones, Part 1

🌟 In part 1 of “An Eating Plan for Brain Health,” I reviewed the mechanisms through which our bodies use glucose for energy, and noted that our brain cells need a constant supply of glucose in order to function properly.

🌟 In part 2 of the series, I introduced the concept of glucose hypometabolism. This is a disruption, or impairment, in the brain's ability to properly make use of glucose. It's often a by-product of insulin resistance, diabetes, and/or the chronic inflammation caused by oxidative stress. It leads to a decreased supply of energy to the brain cells, and thus decreased brain function. This condition is often seen in those with neurodegenerative conditions, In fact, it’s often observed, even before the onset of noticeable cognitive symptoms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let me begin by saying that I’m going to be talking about the ketogenic diet as a tool for improving the symptoms of cognitive impairment. Remember, this post is for educational and informational purposes only. It’s designed to give you foundational information that you might use as part of your own health journey; both for the brain and body.

🛑 If you have TYPE 1 diabetes, please consult a healthcare practitioner to ensure your blood sugar is well controlled before experimenting with a ketogenic diet. TYPE 2 diabetics should make any transition slowly so their body’s can gradually adjust.

I am not a doctor. My goal is to empower you. 💖

Alright, here we go. 🤗

Healthy bodies are wonderfully resilient and adaptable. When carbohydrates are scarce and glucose is unavailable, they can switch gears and begin burning fat for fuel. This produces an alternate source of energy known as ketones. This metabolic flexibility is what helped our ancestors survive their feast or famine existence.

Why is this important for us? Well, these ketone bodies play a vital role, particularly for our brains. As I discussed in a previous post, many of us have developed glucose hypometabolism; a reduction in the ability to properly make use of glucose. Unlike glucose, which needs insulin to transport it into cells, ketones can cross the blood-brain barrier unhindered. They provide a direct source of energy to our brain cells when glucose is unavailable or difficult to access.

Unfortunately, as I touched on in part 2, modern lifestyles and environmental exposures have taken a toll on our health. Many of us have lost this metabolic flexibility; that is, the ability to adaptively switch between using glucose or ketones for energy. That means, if we need our bodies to produce ketones for energy, it may require help to make that transition.

To be continued… 😉

Sources:

The Goal: Metabollic Flexibility
https://www.facebook.com/drdalebredesen/videos/814173209365683“

“Is the Keto Diet Safe If You Have Type 1 Diabetes?”
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/keto-diet-diabetes-type-1

09/13/2023

It's time for another Which One Wednesday! 🥳

09/06/2023

Which One Wednesday is back!! 🥳

My response is in the comments 😉