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European study Special diets can delay Alzheimer’s in its early stages
| Author / Publisher: Friederike Meyer zu Tittingdorf * / Dr. Ilka Ottleben
Alzheimer’s is currently incurable and can hardly be treated with drugs. However, as researchers in a European study found, dementia can apparently at least be delayed in the early stages – through a special diet, a cocktail of medical nutrients that contains a defined combination of essential fatty acids, vitamins and other nutrients.
Company in the matter
Saarbrücken – The onset of Alzheimer’s disease is evident through a decline in brain and memory performance, and short-term memory in particular suffers. Patients and their relatives recognize this long before actual dementia breaks out. “This early stage can be easily identified by examining brain water and brain MRI, which reveal a typical Alzheimer’s narrowing of the hippocampus,” explains Tobias Hartmann, Professor of Dementia Prevention at Saarland University, who leads the study. European LipiDiDiet. In the large study, over three hundred participants with early symptoms were treated with a special medicinal food for a longer period of time.
The nutrient cocktail significantly slows down the change process in the brain
In recent years, the first interim results have been published, which have already proved its effectiveness. “But only now, after three years of treatment, have there been significant differences between the study participants and the control group,” says Hartmann. The latter received an ineffective placebo agent, which, however, was identical in taste, texture and color. Neither the patients, nor the doctors, nor the scientists knew who was being given the placebo or multi-nutrient drink.
“In patients with the nutrient cocktail, the brains of participants with Alzheimer’s disease shrank by 20% less than in the comparison group, so the process of change in the brain could be significantly slowed. It was even more important that brain performance decreased between 40 and 70 percent less than in untreated subjects, ”Hartmann explains.
(Image: Saarland University)
“The positive effects of the treatment were particularly evident in the participants who were able to start at a very early stage of Alzheimer’s disease. We were also able to find, which surprised us, that the effects increased over the course of treatment and expanded not only in relation to memory but also to other cognitive areas the longer the treatment lasted, “explains Hartmann. For example, test subjects were able to cope with daily challenges such as paying bills, remembering the route or dealing with emergencies, better than the control group.
Special combination of fatty acids, vitamins and other nutrients
The “Fortasyn Connect” nutrient blend used for the treatment of Alzheimer’s patients contains a special combination of essential fatty acids, vitamins and other nutrients. These include
- vitamins B12, B6, C, E and also folic acid
Previous pre-clinical research from the LipiDiDiet consortium and other laboratories such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has shown that these nutrients reduce a number of brain changes typical of Alzheimer’s disease. Further clinical studies also showed positive results in memory and EEG measurements, which indicated increased brain activity in treated subjects.
Alzheimer’s disease: Research is urgently needed
There are currently around 47 million people worldwide with Alzheimer’s disease or similar dementia for which there is no cure. This number is expected to double within the next 20 years, and scientists predict that around 130 million people will be affected by 2050.
“Despite intensive research, unfortunately there are still no drugs that could be used to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Some medications temporarily improve symptoms, but after a while they let the patient fall back to the starting position. In this context, the positive effects we have been able to achieve with the special nutrient blend are a great success. We hope that study participants will only progress slowly in the future so that they can lead a largely self-determined life even in old age, “says Tobias Hartmann.
Originalpublikation: Hilkka Soininen, Alina Solomon, Pieter Jelle Visser, Suzanne B Hendrix, Kaj Blennow, Miia Kivipelto, Tobias Hartmann, LipiDiDiet Clinical Study Group: LipiDiDiet 36-Month Multinutrient Clinical Trial in Prodromal Alzheimer’s Disease; Alzheimer’s and Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association; First published: 13 September 2020, https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.12172
* F. Meyer zu Tittingdorf: Saarland University, 66123 Saarbrücken
(ID: 46974377)
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