disease control

Alzheimers and Vitamin D

By Edward W. Pegg, III, MD
urrently, Alzheimers disease has no known cure and the medications available only bring about a small amount of symptomatic improvement. Furthermore, we dont know what causes Alzheimers, but recent research results are raising hopes that someday it might be possible to delay, slow down, or even prevent this devastating disease. Last month, I discussed the results of some new research and treatments for Alzheimers. Several studies suggested a connection between consuming too much sugar and developing Alzheimers. There also appears to be a possible link between Alzheimers and Vitamin D deficiency. There was a study published in September 2012 that actually looked at the combination of Namenda, which is a commonly used medication for treating Alzheimer disease, and vitamin D. In this study, there were patients, assessed with neuropsychological testing, who were on Namenda alone and others who were on vitamin D alone. Following this testing, the patients were then placed on a combination of both Namenda and vitamin D and showed a fairly dramatic improvement in their neuropsychiatric scores. The most commonly used test, the MMSE, showed an improvement of 4 points on a 30 point test. Typically, an Alzheimer patient may lose two points a year. So this would be similar to regaining the last two years of your life. The reason that neither of these products is very effective alone but show dramatic changes in combination may have to do with their work in tandem at the NMDA channel on nerve cells. The NMDA channel is important for learning, but in Alzheimer disease, it is thought that it may be left on and allows too much inflow of calcium. Calcium in small amounts can convey messages from other cells but in large amounts can lead to internal damage in the cell and can even lead to cell death. In the studies done, it was found that the Namenda seems to slow the infusion of calcium into the cell while the vitamin D is a neurosteroid hormone that is thought to work within the cell to slow or to prevent oxidative stress that may otherwise lead to cell injury or death. This may explain why neither the Namenda nor vitamin D is effective on their own, but the combination working at two separate steps in calcium metabolism appears to have a significant effect on memory. Vitamin D can be used at 800 IU each day in conjunction with Namenda. While science continues to search for a cure for Alzheimers, the best approach is to focus on prevention. There is no definitive evidence yet about what can prevent Alzheimers or age-related cognitive decline, but we do know that a healthy lifestyleone that includes a healthy diet, physical activity, appropriate weight, and no smokingcan maintain and improve overall health and well-being. Making healthy choices can also lower the risk of certain chronic diseases, like heart disease and diabetes, and scientists are very interested in the possibility that a healthy lifestyle might have a beneficial effect on Alzheimers as well. In the meantime, as research continues to pinpoint what works to prevent Alzheimers, people of all ages can benefit from taking positive steps to get and stay healthy. If you missed last months article on the connection between Alzheimers and insulin resistance, please contact Cheryl Eash at 309-664-2524 or eash7@aol.com. For more information on Alzheimers or any neurological issue, you may contact Dr. Pegg at 309-661-7344.
Page 12 Healthy Cells Magazine Bloomington April 2013