Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease are the two leading neurodegenerative diseases currently affecting so many lives and families. I had an opportunity to sit in a patient consultation shadowing one of my colleagues last week. The patient presented with a long standing tremors, and she was terrified that she might have Parkinson’s Diseases (she had a family history). Although we have genetic testings available to identify if we have genes for this disease and that, what comes after? How do we prevent it if we carry particular disease triggering genes?
A recent journal compilation by Dr. Jeffrey P. Novack, PhD explained in his paper (2017) how and why (to certain extent) these two neurodegenerative diseases may happen so frequently nowadays. He proposes that the well known hypothesis about inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and oxidative stress/reactive oxygen theory causing Neurodegenerative Diseases need to be look as one mechanism at fault,
AUTOPHAGY = cell “eating” itself.
Yes, our body has this weird but interesting and much needed system where the old and clumped cell components can be “eaten” away and be cleaned up for new cells to be made. Neurodegenerative Diseases are presented when parts of brain (=many brain cells) have been solidified and stopped functioning – leading to memory decline, dementia, movement disorder and such.
But, Dr. Novack says there are hopes around us that will help us to prevent and/or treat neurodegenerative diseases.
Food from our Nature.
- Cruciferous Vegetable (sulforaphane)
- Burdock = Arctium lappa (Arctigenin)
- Skin of grapes, blueberries, raspberries (Resveratrol)
- Green Tea (Epigallocatechin)
- Chinese herb named Tripterygium wilfordii
- Turmeric = Curcuma longa (Curcumin)
- Fruits + Veggies, esp. apples, berries, onions (Quercetin)
- Vitamin E
- Roots of Barberry, Tree turmeric, Oregon grape, Goldenseal, Yellowroot, Chinese goldthread
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
These natural substances will help us to “eat” up the deformed cells and clean up the space at cellular level. And help us to keep making new healthy cells, especially brain.
Eat up everyone 🙂 of course, everything in moderation.