This will be a very different post so take it or leave it!
A friend Cathy Hatley, sent me a link that was streamed live over the internet Sunday for 4 hours!  So many people were watching that the site crashed, but then they got it working!  I can send you the whole thing if you would like!  It is called "Unlocking the code for brain healing".  The speaker was Dr. Wes Youngberg, who a lifestyle medicine specialist and clinical nutritionist at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Public Health.  The research is from UCLA, Harvard, LLU, and Cleveland Clinic.
I would urge you to take all studies with a grain of salt, as we all know of well known studies that turn out to be completely false.  Do your own research and thinking, and do what is right for you.  But this nutshell from the seminar may have some good points in it that will make you think.
A friend of mine, Sherry Lee, and I were talking after church this week.  What is it that makes it seems like dementia is now an epidemic?  We all knew people in our childhood that were a little daffy, and people said they had "hardening of the arteries".  But this seems much worse.  Is it the environment?  I have been trying to figure out how this all relates to Bob.  He certainly exercised enough (at least 2 hours a day on the stationary bike or rowing machine) but maybe he exercised at the wrong time?  Lack of sleep as they note, could certainly had something to do with it, but then by all rights, I should have dementia as well.  Could the food he ate be at fault?  He ate almost a whole box of Little Debbies (which we no longer have in the house) once or twice.  Valerie caught him snitching in the middle of the night while I was at work and ratted on him!
So we will proceed with the highlights of the seminar.  I was writing as fast as I could, and Bob was talking to me the whole time, and making comments, so I hope it makes sense!  You will hear a lot about insulin resistance, and how it relates to the brain.
You need to avoid things that have high fructose at all costs, as it causes insulin resistance and increases the risk for Alzheimer's.  Inflammation also stimulates formation of amyloid plaques.  Measures of inflammation in plaque dust and the arteries are CRP studies that give some idea of the extent.  The brain need some amyloid, but too much is bad and it needs to be controlled.  The foods that cause the highest inflammation are 1.  Refined grains 2.  Processed meats 3.  Sugar (candy, cake, pastries) 4.  Diet soda (an Alzheimer's pantry he says).  Things that help control inflammation are
1.  Getting a good night's sleep (the hours before midnight are the best) 2.  Get in good bright light, as it increases melatonin formation and helps you sleep better.  It also gives you Vitamin D which is even better than Vitamin C as an inflammation fighter.  Sleep cleanses the brain.  3.  You need to control constant or chronic infections in your body--urinary tract infections, sinus infections, and tooth infections.  These will all cause inflammation of the brain (and of the heart as well).  Fortify your body to combat infections.  4.  Do a gentle walk after you eat dinner.  Your blood sugar rises dramatically after you eat, and for every minute you walk,  you lower your blood sugar 1-2 points. But hard exercise such as a marathon causes blood sugar to crash, and causes the immune system to plummet. 5.  Follow an optimal plant based diet.  Beans and legumes are the most powerful food to lower insulin resistance and lower blood sugar for the next 24 hours.  You need optimal digestion for optimal brain function.  The less insulin (your body produces) the less insulin you need to use in the rest of your body and less amyloid plaques form.  In other words, the more insulin you have to produce to lower blood sugar in your body, the less can be used to break down beta amyloids in the brain, and the brain becomes damaged.
The next section is about insulin resistance and information can also be found at "diabetes undone.com", "dryoungberg.com", and "Diabetes and Alzheimer's"--Ewan McNay on YouTube.
Alzheimer's is also called a Type III diabetes--diabetes of the brain.  Type II diabetes is called Alzheimer's of the pancreas, and is an insulin resistant state.  It is an amyloid disease like Alzheimer's.  Diabetes and pre-diabetes are precursors to Alzheimer's and low grade infections cause amyloid plaques in the pancreas.  A lot of adults have insulin resistance because of stress and crazy life styles.  Acute stress causes the adrenal glands to produce more cortisol and the liver will also dump sugar.  Insulin allows sugar to flow from the blood stream to the cells of the body.  The brain needs glucose and time released carbohydrates to function.  So you need to try to protect the brain from hypoglycemic coma.  If the blood sugar is too low in the brain, brain cells will be injured and contribute to Alzheimer's.  Low grade infections also cause amyloid plaques in the pancreas.  A low grade infection is a major driver of the insulin resistance and beta cell damage.  But you need to find the cause of the infection rather than throwing drugs at it!  Insulin enhances the hippocampus in the brain and glucose supply to the hippocampus is a key component of memory.  Also stay hydrated.
Speaking of drugs, the next risk factor is drugs and he talked a lot about them.  A lot of drugs are anticholinergic, and cause memory loss.  An anticholinergic agent is a substance  that blocks the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the central and peripheral nervous system.  Some of the main ones he mentioned are Xanax, Abilify, Tagamet, Haldol, Zantac, Coumadin, Claritin, and Zyrtec.  Some are over the counter, and others are routinely prescribed by physicians.  Amazing stuff, huh?
Is your brain spinning with all this "nursey" information?  I hope you found even one thing to help.  That is, if you lasted through the whole thing!
To your optimum health of brain and body,
Betty