Five Things You Can Do NOW to Help Prevent Dementia

Have you heard that dementia and some forms of Alzheimer’s Disease are now being called Type 3 Diabetes because of the connection of insulin resistance to neurodegenerative diseases?

Yes, you read that correctly. Problems in your gut can have a direct impact on brain health via the gut-brain axis.

Did you know you can do quite a lot to help PREVENT cognitive decline? Please don’t wait; researchers have spent tens of BILLIONS of dollars on finding something to slow down and/or cure these neurodegenerative diseases – and we are still far from understanding how to do this.

According to research, Alzheimer’s Disease is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States and will afflict an estimated 14 million people in this country by 2050. (In case you’re curious, heart disease, cancer, accidents, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory disease are the others.)

These brain diseases are heart-breaking, affecting parts of the brain responsible for memory, language, and thinking. The characteristic symptoms of dementia are difficulties with memory, language, problem-solving, and other thinking skills. Alzheimer’s Disease is one form of dementia.

But, researchers are discovering that we can take action – especially with our diet – to prevent many types of dementia. How? Keep reading.

Prevent Dementia With Five Simple Dietary Changes

Reduce/Eliminate Refined Sugars and Artificial Sweeteners. We now know that processed/refined sugars cause a myriad of health problems, from obesity and diabetes to heart disease and cancer. We have generally known this since the 1960s from the sugar industry’s own research. We also know that sugar is a drug (hitting the same reward center in the brain as cocaine) with addictive qualities.

Most of us following the standard American diet (SAD) consume sugar all day long, drinking sugar in our juices and coffees/teas, then eating sugar in our breakfast, lunch, and dinner – along with multiple sugar snacks. Americans consume, on average, more than 100+ pounds of sugar annually.

Refined sugar (and especially fructose, which is used in most consumer products) leads to chronic inflammation, oxidation, autoimmune diseases, and most chronic health conditions – including dementia.

But don’t just switch to diet sodas or artificial sweeteners, such as Splenda, Sweet'N Low, or Equal. These have links to chronic health issues and dementia. Consider something like stevia (a natural herb), or one of the newer sweeteners, such as allulose or xylitol.

One final note: Eliminate simple carbs, such as white bread and pasta, as these become sugar in your gut.

Reduce/Eliminate the Consumption of Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs). Are you aware the vast majority of foods sold in grocery stores are categorized as ultra-processed? What I call Imposter Foods because they look like foods we know, but have been chemically altered. These are the products many of us regularly buy: frozen dinners (including pizzas), ready-to-eat meals, noodles, sauces, dressings, condiments, crackers, breads, cookies, biscuits, candies, juices, sodas, etc.

These products can be traced back to the late 1980s and early 1990s, when fat was deemed a danger to our health; food marketers had to create new formulas for their products, and did so with dire consequences – adding additional sugars, toxic seed oils, and a laundry list of additional flavorings, dyes, and preservatives.

While these UPFs may save time for busy families, what is the health cost for this convenience? You will have to make the decision whether your family’s health is more valuable than the time you save buying these inferior and dangerous products. (Yes, UPF consumption has been linked to diabetes, obesity, cancer… and dementia.)

The solution is eating more real foods and cooking from scratch. If you do buy a processed food, most experts recommend NOT buying the ones with more than five ingredients or containing ingredients that you can’t pronounce.

Reduce/Eliminate Eating at Fast Food Restaurants (and Most Restaurants). Fast food is so commonplace in our culture, that more than a third of us eat fast food at least once a day – and we have the option to buy from the subsidized dollar menus or supersize ourselves to death.

One fast food “meal” (including sides and a drink) can be close to 100 grams of sugar. Anything you buy fried is cooked in the lowest quality oils (typically soybean, corn, canola), and is reheated, and contains extremely high levels of Omega-6 fatty acids – when we really need more Omega-3 fatty acids in our diets.

The other issue is the quality of the ingredients in restaurants. The vast majority use conventionally grown/raised meats and produce – because they are the cheapest to purchase. These “industrial” foods are swimming in pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, and other toxic elements.

Again, the solution is purchasing high-quality foods and cooking them at home. If you must go out for a meal, choose farm-to-table and other “clean” ingredient restaurants.

Reduce/Eliminate Alcohol Consumption. Alcohol basically converts to sugar in our guts, promoting the growth of pro-inflammatory gut bacteria, resulting in a similar path as consuming sugar.

In fact, most recent studies show there is very little good from drinking beer, wine, liquor. Drinking alcohol in any amount carries a health risk, but that risk increases greatly with the amount of alcohol consumed.

According to one of the leading experts in the field, Dr. Robert Lustig, sugar and alcohol act similarly within the liver, harming our metabolic health in the process. Moderate to heavy use of alcohol has dire effects on the liver, metabolic syndrome, and fatty liver disease.

Adding More Fiber to Your Diet. The vast majority of Americans and others consuming Western diets do not consume enough fiber – and fiber is crucial to our health.

The culprit? Those ultra-processed foods, because when the food companies changed up the formulas adding more sugars and seed oils, it also removed something extremely important: fiber.

Including enough fiber in your diet lowers your risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity, colorectal cancer, and gastrointestinal conditions (such as diverticulitis, constipation, and hemorrhoids).

Our ancestors regularly had fiber in their diet – from fruits, nuts, vegetables, and other plants.

Good sources of fiber include: avocados, potatoes, beans, berries, apples, seeds, nuts, and cruciferous vegetables.

Final Thoughts on Fighting Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease

Remember that the key to prevention is better nutrition and diet. Eat healthy real foods, including quality proteins (beef, chicken, fish, wild game), eggs, leafy green vegetables, cruciferous vegetables, berries, nuts, and seeds. Buy local or organic.

Besides diet, which is critical to OVERALL health as well as brain health, here are some other suggestions for fighting dementia:

• Get regular/daily exercise, including both aerobic and strength/resistance work

• Reduce chronic health conditions (and changing your diet as above will help tremendously here)

• Keep blood pressure at a safe level

• Monitor/reduce the use of excess pharmaceutical medications

• Stop smoking cigarettes

• Develop healthy sleep patterns (and get enough quality sleep)

• Keep socially active; stay socially engaged with your community

• Take care of your mental health (diet should help, but seek healing for past trauma wounds)

• Stay cognitively engaged/active (such as reading, hobbies, brain teasers, etc.)

Finally, following this advice will not only help prevent dementia and mental cognition issues, but almost all chronic health issues, including cancer. Following the advice in this article will help boost your immune system, reduce insulin resistance, improve your heart and cardiovascular system, and greatly improve overall health and well-being.

Useful Additional Dementia and Diet Resources

• One in 10 Americans Over 65 Have Dementia—Here are 15 Ways to Reduce Your Risk

• 11 Ways to Reduce Your Risk of Dementia

• A High-Fiber Diet May Reduce the Risk of Dementia

• Alcohol use: Weighing Risks and Benefits

• Change Your Grocery Shopping and SAVE Your Life

• Healing Starts With Eating Real Food: No More Fast Food

• How and Why Eggs Should be a Key Part of Your Diet

• Keys to Truly Understanding Food Labels

• Purge Your Pantry For Health and Healing

• Are Ultra-Processed Foods Killing You?