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Page 16| Abby's Magazine - www.AbbysMag.com Can Alzheimer's Be Prevented? You CAN Replenish Your Brain Believe it or not, there are strategies you can do to help regrow your brain cells and improve connectivity. Here's our action list to recharge and replenish your brain: • Reducing daily calories. Keeping track of your daily food intake and overall nutrition does more than just help your waistline, it helps your brain. • Limiting carbs. • Increasing healthy fats, like certain nuts (almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts) and coconut oil • Increasing DHA • Incorporating physical and mental exercise in your daily routine • Healthy levels of magnesium and vitamin D for optimum brain function. Magnesium may help overall performance and vitamin D helps reduce inflammation. • Eating foods rich in folate (vitamin B9). These include lentils, black eyed peas, spinach, asparagus, avocado, romaine lettuce, and broccoli. (Asparagus Extract Tea also provides high levels of folate.) With new discoveries being made every day in the field of brain health, scientists and doctors may not be far from an Alzheimer's cure. But in the meantime, prevention may be achievable by simple choices we incorporate into our daily life and the lives of the people we care about. Although there may not be a cure yet for Alzheimer's disease, there's certainly things that can reduce your risk. Alzheimer's disease and dementia occur in the part of the brain that is in charge of cognitive function and memory. A surprising new study is showing that may EFA's (Essential Fatty Acids) help improve cognitive flexibility. Quite simply, cognitive flexibility is the ability to focus and do multiple things at once. As we get older, this capacity becomes diminished. This study followed a group of 40 people between the ages of 65 and 75 in good mental health. The study showed that the levels of cognitive flexibility were directly related to the levels of EPA and DHA in the blood. In addition, those with higher EPA and DHA in their blood had brains that were normal in size. As we age, brain shrinkage is normal. However, this recent study shows that there are things we can do to help brain volume. EPA and DHA can be naturally found in fatty fish such as tuna, salmon, mackerel, cod, halibut, whitefish, and trout. If you decide to incorporate more fish into your diet, go with, wild fish rather than farm raised. Best of all, you can get EPA and DHA in Omega-3 fish oil supplements. Lifestyle choices are important for preventative brain health that may reduce the risk for Alzheimer's or dementia. And the earlier the start, the better, such as in your early 30s – 40s. Some key things to think about for better brain health include avoiding: • Processed foods of all kinds • Foods high in refined sugar or high fructose corn syrup • Foods that are genetically engineered (GMO) • High gluten foods • Vegetables, fruit or meats exposed to pesticides or antibiotics