The Right Supplements for Alzheimer's

The balance of the scientific evidence at this time indicates it is more effective to treat Alzheimer’s with food rather than with supplements. Getting an Alzheimer’s patient to start eating rose hips and walnuts, however, may be impossible, and nutritional supplements may save caregivers precious time. Because single supplements are inherently unbalanced, however, it is essential that the person with AD take all the recommended supplements (caretaker counting pills if necessary), and it is also important to take the right supplements for the right stage of the disease.

Single antioxidants do not work. Precise adherence to this protocol is required for antioxidant supplementation to work. Here are some of the reasons why:

Beta-carotene is especially effective at capturing free radicals of oxygen, but it only works when there is adequate oxygen in the bloodstream. When oxygen concentrations are low, as in the case of vascular disease, vitamin E is a more effective antioxidant.

Beta-carotene and vitamin E protect the parts of the cell that contain cholesterol, such as the cell membrane (the lining of the cell has to be “fatty” to keep the contents of the cell from dissolving into the bloodstream), but vitamin C protects the water-soluble components of the cell inside. Too much vitamin C or vitamin E causes the vitamin to act as a pro-oxidant, that is, to become tissue-destructive, in the parts of the cell it does not usually protect. Too little vitamin C makes it difficult for the brain to use vitamin E, because vitamin C recycles vitamin E as it captures free radicals.

The mitochondria, or energy centers, in cells in the brains of people at high risk for AD often have a defect that can be compensated by additional coenzyme Q10 and NADH. Coenzyme Q10 neutralizes peroxide radicals better than vitamin E, but it is not as effective in quenching other kinds of radicals. Coenzyme Q10 also recharges vitamin E, but not as effectively as vitamin C.

In doses above 500 milligrams (mg) per day for more than two weeks, n-acetyl cysteine (NAC) acts as a chelator of zinc, that is, it removes zinc from circulation. After two weeks of taking 500 mg of NAC a day, it is necessary either to take supplemental zinc or to lower the dosage of NAC. Alpha-lipoic acid can also deplete zinc.

Vitamin E in megadoses can cause bleeding. Aspirin in high doses can cause bleeding. Vitamin E and aspirin together even in moderate doses can cause bleeding.

When vitamin E is accidentally dosed at a rate of more than 3,000 IU per day, it is necessary to take vitamin K to prevent bleeding (a single 5 mg tablet is sufficient).

The half- life of antioxidants in the human bloodstream is only 6 to 12 hours, so half of each dose of antioxidants has to be taken twice a day.

I leave for you to decide whether it is easier or harder to use supplements or foods. A whole foods is certainly less expensive, and there are fewer ways to create an antioxidant imbalance with whole foods than there are with overdosed or forgotten antioxidant supplements that have to be taken twice a day. If changes in diet are impossible, however, AD can be treated with supplementation.