New Studies Point to Ways to Help Prevent Dementia and Alzheimer’s

With no cure in sight, two new studies point to ways in which you can cut your risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in the first place. They are natural and avoid the need for medication.

• An Australian study finds that getting more sun can lower your risk of suffering from dementia. The study finds a direct link between dementia and a lack of vitamin D.

• In another newly released study, scientists find that eating more omega-3 foods, such as tuna and salmon, can cut your risk of developing Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, in half.

These two new studies come as scientists seek to find ways in which we can naturally lower our risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease without medication. In an earlier study researchers found that too much fructose in your brain might drive development of the disease. Another concluded that you can prevent Alzheimer’s by exercising at least twice a week.

Major Cause of Disability

Dementia is a major cause of dependency and disability among older people worldwide. It affects your behavior and your thinking as you age.

A progressive or chronic syndrome, it leads to a deterioration in brain function. More than 55 million people around the world suffer from dementia. As many as 10 million new cases are diagnosed each year.

More Sun Helps

The world-first study at the University of South Australia found:

• Low levels of vitamin D from the sun were linked with lower brain volumes and an increased risk of stroke and dementia.

• Analyses of genes lent support to a link between deficiency in vitamin D and dementia.

• As many as 17% cases of dementia might be prevented by raising the levels of vitamin D to a normal level.

‘Incredibly Significant’

The findings are “incredibly significant,” says Professor Elina Hypponen, senior investigator and director of the Australian Centre for Precision Health at the University of South Australia.

Dementia is a debilitating and progressive disease that can devastate families and individuals alike, she points out. If we are able to change this situation through making sure that none of us is severely deficient in vitamin D it also would have considerable benefits. We could change the wellbeing and health of thousands, Hypponen adds.

Most of us are likely to be alright, but for someone who—for whatever reason—might not receive sufficient vitamin D from the sun, changes to their diet might not be sufficient and supplementation might be needed, she says. 

Vitamin D is a hormone precursor that increasingly is recognized for its far-reaching effects, including those on the health of the brain. Until now, however, it has been extremely hard to examine what would take place if scientists were able to prevent vitamin D deficiency, Hypponen says.

First of its Sort

The study is the first to look at the impact of extremely low levels of vitamin D on the risk of stroke or dementia using powerful analysis of genes among a large population, she adds.

The study analyzed data from 294,514 participants in Britain’s Biobank. It examined the effect of low levels of vitamin D and the risk of dementia and stroke. The researchers used Mendelian randomization (MR)—a way of measuring changes in genes—to determine the cause of brain changes, dementia, and stroke.

The study appears in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Eat More Fish, Study Suggests

People with an increased level of omega-3 DHA levels are 49% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study by the Fatty Acid Research Institute. DHA stands for docosahexaenoic acid.

The study found that eating more foods rich in omega-3 DHA might slow the development of the disease. Omega-3 DHA is found in oily fish foods, such as salmon and tuna, as well as in walnuts.

The study is in line with earlier research findings on the topic, explains Dr. William S. Harris, president of the Fatty Acid Research Institute, and senior author of the study.

Fifteen years ago similar findings were reported in the parents of the people who were the focus of the present investigation, Harris says. Similar findings made a generation apart in a similar genetic pool provide considerable confirmation of this relationship between dementia and omega-3 DHA, he adds.

The finding is particularly important for those who carry the ApoE4 gene, which doubles the chances of developing dementia, the researchers add.

In this study scientists examined 1,490 people without dementia who were older than 65. They looked at the levels of DHA in the blood. They later compared the DHA levels in the blood of those who never contracted dementia.

The research team estimates that those people who maintain high Omega-3 DHA levels will live an additional 4.7 years without contracting dementia.

The study is published in the journal Nutrients.

No Cure, but Prevention

Right now no cure has been found for dementia, but these studies show that vitamin D from the sun and omega-3 DHA might have preventative effects.

The impact of such findings would benefit a person’s health. It also will cut down on the economic cost of living with the disease. The researchers estimate that living almost five years without developing Alzheimer’s could save more than $500,000.

The cost of treating the disease and dementia in the United States is estimated at $355 billion.