YOUR BRAIN ON STORIES      

Prevention Magazine – September 2016

What engages more of your brain than music or math?  University of California, Berkeley, researchers have discovered that it’s storytelling.  Their studies show that listening to story podcasts activated sensations, emotions and memories not on just one side but across the entire brain, thereby upending right brain/left brain theory.

“Understanding a story requires access to all kinds of cognitive processes – social reasoning,  spatial reasoning, emotional responses, visual imagery, and more,” says study author Alex Huth.  The findings may one day help scientists “read” the brains of people who can’t speak due to stroke or disease.

The general stages of Alzheimer’s disease

Written by Mary Ellen Ellis and Valencia Higuera
Medically Reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, PhD, CRNP on November 21, 2016

The typical progression of Alzheimer’s disease is:

Stage	Average time frame
mild, or early stage	2 to 4 years
moderate, or middle stage	2 to 10 years
severe, or late stage	1 to 3 years

 

Doctors also use Dr. Barry Resiberg’s seven major clinical stages from the “Global Deterioration Scale” to help with diagnosis. There is no universally agreed upon staging system, so healthcare providers may use the one that they are most familiar with.

 

Mild impairment or decline

The symptoms of Alzheimer’s are less clear during stage 3. While the entire stage lasts about seven years, the symptoms will slowly become clearer over a period of two to four years. Only people close to someone in this stage may notice the signs. Work quality will decline, and they may have trouble learning new skills.

Other examples of stage 3 signs include:

·         getting lost even when traveling a familiar route

·         finding it hard to remember the right words or names

·         being unable to remember what you just read

·         not remembering new names or people

·         misplacing or losing a valuable object

·         decreasing concentration during testing

MAXIMIZE YOUR MEMORY WITH BERRIES

Prevention Magazine Insert

 

Finding your memory a bit fuzzier than it used to be?

The first word to remember to sharpen your memory is flavonoids.  These are the amazing healing compounds found in fruits and vegetables.  Berries and some vegetables are particularly rich in a type of flavonoid called anthocyanins, which directly affect the area of the brain associated with learning and memory.

 

Berries and some vegetables (see list below) have been shown to naturally block an inflammatory enzyme called COX-2, which is the main promoter of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.  No wonder studies show that frequent consumption of these delicious berries and  vegetables delay cognitive aging by as many as 2.5 years.

 

Plants rich in anthocyanins are Vaccinium species, such as blueberry, cranberry, and bilberry; Rubus berries, including black raspberry, red raspberry, and blackberry; blackcurrant, cherry, eggplant (aubergine) peel, black rice, Concord grape, muscadine grape, red cabbage, and violet petals.

Eat This Way and Avoid Alzheimer’s

Prevention Magazine, July 2015

                                                    

People who tried the new scientist-designed MIND diet lowered their risk of Alzheimer’s by 53%.  Eat this many weekly servings of the following nine foods.

Whole Grains (21)

Packed with fiber to fuel a productive brain.  Aim for 3 servings a day.

Berries (2)

Thanks to their flavonols, they’re the only fruit that can slow brain decline.

Beans (3)

Plenty of fiber, plus low-fat protein for growing brain cells.

Leafy Greens (6)

Full of antioxidants and carotenoids to protect gray matter.

Poultry (2)

Delivering dementia-preventing B vitamins and low-fat protein.

Nuts (5)

Rich in vitamin E, which has been shown to lower risk of Alzheimer’s.

Other Vegetables (7)

Packed with plant-based antioxidant power.

Fish (1)

Rich in brain-cell-fortifying omega-3 fatty acids.

Wine (7)

Alcohol reduces dementia risk. Stick to 1 glass a day.

·         And use olive oil for cooking and dressings, for its memory-protecting polyphenols.

Red meat:                                                           4 times a week or less

Fast food, fried food, and cheese:            less than once a week

Butter or margarine:                                      less than 5 times a week