Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's & Dementia: On Suggested Causes & Cures

Part 1: Proposed Causes (3)

Living close to a major road

In an interesting large population-based study published in 2017, living in proximity to heavy traffic was linked to a higher incidence of dementia.^[1] In 2001, Canadian researchers had set out to quantify the possible impact of this relatively novel environmental factor (owed to progress and modern times) on the incidence of three neurological illnesses, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and MS.

Following and evaluating until 2012 the health records of 6.6 million people (all of which had been free of these diseases at the outset), no correlation could be found between living close to heavy traffic and the risk of developing Parkinson's or MS.

A clear and "mathematically precise" picture however emerged as to the link between living close to a major road and developing a form of dementia incl. Alzheimer's. Individuals living under 50 meters from heavy traffic had a 7 to 11 % increase in their risk of developing dementia, those living between 50 and 100 meters away had a 4 % increase, and those living from between 100 and 200 meters away still suffered a 2 % higher risk. Only at a distance of over 200 meters away from a major road no significant link could be found.

At this stage it's unclear whether this association is due to the greater fine particulate air pollution caused by the traffic or the increase in noise, or a combination of both. For all concerned it may be advisable to use air filters in every room and protect themselves as much as possible from noise such as by wearing ear plugs when feasible.

Aluminium

“Aluminum is a very toxic element in our nervous system. It is implicated as one of the primary causes of Alzheimer's disease.” While there seems to be no final consensus in this question (let's not forget that industry interests are also at stake), aluminum is known to disturb the biochemical communication among the neurons and to even reduce their longevity. One (German) source describes aluminium as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease and writes (translated by © Healing Cancer Naturally 2008):

“Aluminium is toxic to both humans and fish. Autopsies of deceased Alzheimer's patients showed that the brain plaques typical for persons affected by Alzheimer’s disease contained high concentrations of aluminium. In recent years, large epidemiological studies exploring the link between aluminium in tap water and Alzheimer's incidence furnished more evidence that higher aluminium intake via drinking water leads to increased Alzheimer's incidence.

A prospective cohort study finalised in 2000 followed a total of 3777 participants over a period of eight years. It showed that in locations where aluminium concentrations in tap water exceeded 100 µg/liter, the incidence of senile dementia increased by 100% and that of Alzheimer’s by 114%.^[2] A similar result was found as early as 1989 in a comprehensive study carried out in 88 districts in England and Wales.^[3]”

More recently a study published in the Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology^[4] based on twelve cases of familial Alzheimer’s disease (confirmed by autopsy) found that all brains without exception contained aluminium in amounts ten times higher on average than the doses already considered toxic. And even more damning, there was a link between the age at which the patients had developed Alzheimer's and the aluminium content of their brains. The earlier the onset, the more aluminium their brain tissues contained.

The authors concluded: "... the concentrations of aluminium found ...are highly likely to have contributed to both the onset and the aggressive nature of any ongoing Alzheimer's disease [lending support to the notion of] ... brain aluminium contributing towards all forms of Alzheimer's disease under certain conditions."

In addition to drinking water (incl. treated water), aluminium can be found in many items of daily use such as cookware, cans, baking foil etc. It is also an “accepted” contaminant in many other things such as baking powder. According to the American Waste Water Association (May 1995), plain water is estimated to provide about 5% of overall aluminum in human diets.

The AWWA writes that most aluminum consumed by humans comes from sources such as inhalation (esp. in certain industrial settings), soil clinging to unwashed fruits and vegetables (aluminum apparently is the most abundant metal found in the earth’s crust), processed foods, baked goods (aluminum is used in baking powder and flour as a stabilizing agent), brewed drinks, OTC antacids, anti-perspirants as well as the above-mentioned kitchen helpers.

Aluminium is even added as a food coloring (E173) to certain processed food items. And since aluminium is an immune system stimulant, it's also found in many vaccins!

I’d make sure to avoid all of these to the extent possible and to read all labels very carefully.

Read about silica, the natural opponent to aluminium, as a possible preventative of dementia.

Zolpidem / sleeping pills

Long-term use of Zolpidem was found to be linked to a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, see The Association Between the Use of Zolpidem and the Risk of Alzheimer's Disease Among Older People.

Another source states that using sleeping pills for three months increases the risk of Alzheimer's by 51%.

Alcohol

Alcohol can cause cognitive impairment by contributing to neurodegenerative processes including via neuroinflammation. See Alcohol and Alzheimer's Disease.

Books on Alzheimer’s disease, excitotoxins, etc.

The following lists a few books (of likely many) which discuss the natural healing of Alzheimer's. For more about Alzheimer’s, also read naturalnews.com‘s related articles.

“EXCITOTOXINS: THE TASTE THAT KILLS” by Dr. Blaylock (Health Press 1-800-643-2665)
“DEFENSE AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE“ by Dr. H.J. Roberts (“diabetic specialist and world expert on aspartame poisoning”): (1-800-814-9800).
“Dr. Roberts tells how aspartame poisoning is escalating Alzheimer's Disease, and indeed it is. As the hospice nurse told me, women are being admitted at 30 years of age with Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Blaylock and Dr. Roberts will be writing a position paper with some case histories and will post it on the Internet.”
“According to the Conference of the American College of Physicians, ‘We are talking about a plague of neurological diseases caused by this deadly poison’.”
“Dr. Roberts realized what was happening when aspartame was first marketed. He said ‘his diabetic patients presented memory loss, confusion, and severe vision loss’. At the Conference of the American College of Physicians, doctors admitted that they did not know. They had wondered why seizures were rampant (the phenylalanine in aspartame breaks down the seizure threshold and depletes serotonin, which causes manic depression, panic attacks, rage and violence).”
“The excess glutamate and aspartate slowly begin to destroy neurons. The large majority (75%+) of neural cells in a particular area of the brain are killed before any clinical symptoms of a chronic illness are noticed. A few of the many chronic illnesses that have been shown to be contributed to by long-term exposure [to] excitatory amino acid damage include: Multiple sclerosis (MS), ALS, memory loss, hormonal problems, hearing loss, epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, hypoglycemia, AIDS dementia, brain lesions, and neuroendocrine disorders.”
„Beyond Aspirin: Nature's Answer to Arthritis, Cancer & Alzheimer's Disease” by Thomas M. Newmark/Paul Schulick (Hohm Press, 2000).
"Alzheimer's Disease & the Dementias: An Alternative Perspective (Edgar Cayce Health)" by David McMillin
“Principles and Techniques of Nerve Regeneration” (Cayce's approach to nervous system regeneration) by David McMillin
More on Edgar Cayce’s healing approach to dementia
“Detoxing Chemicals and Pollutants for Optimal Health” by Jeff Morris
(see book excerpts)

HealingCancerNaturally.com's pages on Alzheimer's Disease: Causes, Cures & Prevention are regularly expanded, please check back occasionally.

Footnotes

1 Living near major roads and the incidence of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis: a population-based cohort study www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(16)32399-6/fulltext

2 Rondeau V, Commenges D, Jacqmin-Gadda H, Dartigues JF, Relation between aluminum concentrations in drinking water and Alzheimer's disease: an 8-year follow-up study. Am J Epidemiol, 152(1): 59-66, 2000

3 Martyn CN, Barker DJ, Osmond C, Harris EC, Edwardson JA, Lacey RF, Geographical relation between Alzheimer's disease and aluminum in drinking water. Lancet, 1(8629): 59-62, 1989

4 Aluminium in brain tissue in familial Alzheimer’s disease (www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0946672X16303777). Also see "What is the risk of aluminium as a neurotoxin?" at www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1586/14737175.2014.915745 .

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