Dementia is a loss of brain function. It's not a single disease, but instead refers to a group of illnesses that
involve memory, behavior, learning, and communication problems. The problems are progressive, which means they
slowly get worse.
Dementia reached epidemic proportions as of 2006, when an estimated 4.6 million new cases were being diagnosed
worldwide each year. It's estimated that by the year 2050 the elderly population, aged 65 or older, will be double the
population of children for the first time in history. At the same time, it's expected that 114 million people
worldwide will suffer from some form of dementia.
Diet and Cognitive Decline
Research has suggested that dietary patterns practiced during adulthood are important contributors to ARCD and
dementia risk. Diets high in fat, especially trans and saturated fats, negatively affect cognition, while diets
high in fruits, vegetables, and fish are associated with better cognitive function and lower risk of dementia.
Healthy diets, antioxidant supplements, and the prevention of nutritional deficiencies or exposure to foods and
water with high content of metals appear to be first line of defense against the development and progression of
cognitive decline. While the precise mechanisms underlying these influences are complex, modulation of brain
insulin activity and neuroinflammation are considered likely problems.
Inflammation and oxidative stress play important roles in brain aging. Inflammatory markers, as well as cellular
and molecular oxidative damage, increase during normal brain aging. This increase is accompanied by the related
decline in cognitive and motor performance in the elderly population, even in the absence of neurodegenerative diseases.
One emerging theory regarding the development of dementia, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's disease is that
neuroinflammation hastens the onset.
Excitotoxins: Aspartame and MSG
The role of neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases has been well established.
One of the primary exacerbatory sources of neuroinflammation is diet. Certain food additives are particularly
problematic in this regard. Aspartame, the sweetener in NutraSweet, Equal, and thousands of consumer products,
is a controversial food additive used to sweeten "diet" products artificially. The product has a long history
of causing severe health problems. Along with MSG (monosodium glutamate) and MSG-like food additives, aspartame
is in a class of compounds known as "excitotoxins." These excitotoxins excite brain cells until they die. In other
words, each serving of MSG or aspartame has the potential to cause a little bit of brain damage, which becomes
cumulative and may eventually lead to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, or other neurological diseases.
In his book "Excitotoxins; The Taste that Kills," neurosurgeon Russell L. Blaylock explains how excitotoxins destroy
brain cells and are linked to autism, ADHD, depression, cognitive decline, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's.
How do you protect yourself from damage from excitotoxins? Avoid food additives like aspartame and MSG.
