When I first heard these words, I got excited. At the time I was the CEO of a research and development organisation looking for new and innovative therapies that would change the health of the planet.
My colleagues in the District Health Board assured me that it was impossible to cure Alzheimer’s and that the research that I had discovered was quackery at best and witchcraft at worst. To my shame, I listened to them, leaving Alzheimer’s behind, moving on to autism (now here is another story).
Several years later I met a delightful doctor at an autism conference. I was spellbound as she related her Alzheimer’s story. Some years previously, her husband had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. In her words “My husband is a very special man and I was not prepared to lose him”. She was well connected in her profession and contacted the top specialists in the world.
She was appalled at the lack of effective treatments and the lack of efforts to discover effective treatments, other than a drug response.
My doctor friend started at “ground zero” reviewing the possible causes of Alzheimer’s and addressing them one by one. To cut a long story short, she got back her special man and last I heard they were doing the “happily ever after” thing.
This meeting started me on my own journey. Alzheimer’s is associated with a number of imbalances in the body. Here are a few: blood-sugar dysregulation, heavy metal toxicity, oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation, high homocysteine levels, key microorganisms species, atherosclerosis, poor detoxification pathways, key nutrient deficiencies, high fibrinogen levels and quite a few more.
It was therefore not surprising that Alzheimer’s often occurred alongside such diseases as glaucoma, macular degeneration, cardiovascular irregularities and type 2 diabetes. Alzheimer’s isn’t just a disease of the brain. It is body dis-ease, manifesting in the brain. This is why the trillions of dollar spent on drug research have not come up with a cure. No two cases of Alzheimer’s have the same causes and no two cases of Alzheimer’s will have the same solution.
Around about now you may be asking the question “Well, if we know all that, then goodness gracious! Why are we not testing these things and fixing them and the disease?” I will give you a hint; try “vested interests”.
There is a huge body of scientific evidence showing that Dr Alzheimer’s original theories were correct and the road that the drug companies have take us down is misguided. Again, try “vested interests”.
The other interesting fact is that there is no definitive test for Alzheimer’s. It is one of those diseases that you can only diagnose at a post mortem after death. We did have one client with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis who turned out to have Lyme’s disease and nothing more. Now Lyme’s is not easy, but it is not Alzheimer’s.
At bewell, our approach to Alzheimer’s is to first test brain function, then test for the imbalances associated with the disease. We then tailor a program to the individual dealing with the imbalances. We measure for improvements as we go. The following is the story of one such client.
Jane was 58, trim, attractive, active, and in denial that she had dementia. She had dismissed her diagnosis and was looking for someone offering a quick fix solution for memory lapses. I was the wrong person for that.
Driven by her son, she agreed to do some brain function tests and her results showed her that some parts of her brain were functioning well under par. We conducted a variety of tests to check what was going on in her body. Her mercury toxicity was through the roof. Her homocysteine levels were way too high. She was deficient in iodine, selenium, magnesium, zinc and vitamin D. She had high levels of inflammation and oxidative stress. She was dehydrated.
We worked with Jane addressing each of these issues. We changed her diet, she had to take supplements, make lifestyle changes and she did some physical therapies. These therapies included time in a hyperbaric chamber, pulsed electro magnetic therapy and brain games. Along the way Jane got cross. She had to give up a lot of things she liked: wine, scones and ice-cream. BUT, she liked interacting with her grandchildren more and wanted to be able to carry on doing that.
Each brain function test that Jane took, showed improvement. She went from strength to strength.
Coming back from Alzheimer’s is hard. It is so much easier to just prevent it, but if you have crossed the line do not accept that there is nothing you can do. It just ain’t so.
Life is so precious and is to be enjoyed. You need both mental and physical health. I don’t know about you, but I want to celebrate my 120 birthday by doing the wow thing, going for a cycle ride, having lunch at the marina, paddle boarding in the afternoon, sitting by an outside fire admiring the stars, going to bed and then if I am ready, passing over, on my terms. This is my recipe. What is yours?
Alzheimer’s is the fastest growing disease, at 60% over the past five years. Be everything you were meant to be. Do not let known causes of this insidious disease rob you of your mind.