The ReCODE 2.0 Alzheimer’s Dementia subtypes … and how Nutritional Therapy supports your Brain through them.

You have to start somewhere with personalised healthcare.

So, when a new Client approaches me for a Brain health and/or Dementia risk-avoidance Nutritional Therapy Programme I start by ascertaining their ‘root cause’ of suboptimal Brain health and cognitive decline, (or their most likely influencing factors for potential cognitive decline – everyone has a health history).  This is accomplished through careful & gentle but strategic questioning, and enable me to highly personalise their programme targeted specifically at the Client’s most likely and vulnerable triggers.

How does this process begin?  Here is a quick insight into where I start when inducting new Brain health Dementia prevention Clients into my ReCODE 2.0 Nutritional Therapy Programme.

What is the leading present or most likely trigger for cognitive decline/impairment or Dementia development?

TYPE 1: INFLAMMATORY – the clue is in the name; essentially it is when excessive systemic inflammation is detrimentally impacting Brain function and, if unaddressed, longevity; Brainspan.  We all need a little bit of acute (short term) inflammation, (which quite literally wakes us up in the morning), but it becomes detrimental to health when it spills over into excessive and chronic levels (this can often be discerned from a functional medicine blood test).  Inflammation can be from multiple sources such as an underlying chronic illness or infection, poor oral health, poor diet, chronically high stress levels to name a few.  It is my job as the Nutritionist to dampen any inflammation that can be quelled, and nourish the body in order to best cope with and manage unavoidable inflammation.

TYPE 1.5: GLYCOTOXIC – this does not have a distinct ‘full’ subtype category because it spans all five of the subtypes.  It refers to an insidious toxicity caused by excessive sugar in the diet, and by ‘sugar’ Nutritionists mean predominantly refined glucose & fructose and ultra processed food & drink.

TYPE 2: ATROPHIC – this refers to poor nutrient status, both in terms of deficiency or occasionally excess.  It is one of the reasons I make a point of telling my Clients to add more nutrient dense foods into their diet, and/or recommend ways a Client can get the most nutrients out of the food they are eating, (via strategic food combinations).  This also refers to dietary supplementation where there is a therapeutic need.

TYPE 3: TOXIC – this is where cognitive function is being impaired through exposure to toxins.  These can come from foods (it’s why I typically recommend organic food when possible), but also from the environment – the air we breathe, the water we drink, the chemicals and mould in our home and/or work environments, our oral health, our cosmetic products – everyone will be different and have different sensitivities.  In some ways you could argue that toxin exposure is unavoidable in today’s World, but it is my job to support the body to minimise & manage exposure and detoxify as best as it can.  Therefore this subtype is suspected as the leading mediator of cognitive decline, a detoxification protocol is recommended, but it can be quite an emotionally & physically difficult experience so a lot of therapeutic support is needed.

TYPE 4: VASCULAR – this subtype refers to blood, circulatory and heart health.  Vascular Dementia is, like Alzheimer’s Dementia, its own distinct Dementia diagnosis, however Alzheimer’s can be triggered by vascular incidences for example a Stroke.

TYPE 5: TRAUMATIC – this refers to cognitive decline which may have been caused by head injury.  This could be from a physical accident or injury; head impact and/or concussion, or repeated impact to the head and Brain triggered by certain contact sports.  This is not to say there is a cause-and-effect (although there is ongoing research in this area), however it is very useful to know if a Client has experienced head trauma as this requires specific support in addition to dietary nourishment.

So, this is a brief introduction to the beginning (literally the first 20 minutes of my pre-Consultation preparation and then Client-facing questioning) of a Dementia risk-avoidance Nutritional Therapy programme.  When the above has been analysed, as a Registered Nutritionist I will always prioritise a ‘food first’ approach, so here are five of the non-negotiable general nutritious food groups to support Brain health & cognitive function, (then nuances and personalisation comes with 1:2:1 support):

• Prioritise beneficial fats (essential fatty acids) – particularly foods rich in Omega-3.

• Prioritise lean proteins, and ‘complete’ proteins if possible (this makes it more difficult to be vegan on a Brain health Nutritional Therapy Programme)

• Prioritise carbohydrates in the form of dark leafy green vegetables and colourful berries.

• Take care to include foods sufficient in the minerals Iron and Magnesium, the antioxidant Vitamins A,C,E, Vitamin D and Vitamin K, and the nutrient compound Choline.

(See previous Blog Posts for further details and information.)

As I hope this post has highlighted, this is a highly complex and personalised area contributing to a much bigger picture of systemic health, so if you feel you, a friend of a family member needs bespoke and personalised support please do not hesitate to get in touch.

In the meantime, don’t forget Eat, Drink, Think Nutrition and spare a thought (no pun intended) for your Brain health.  Losing your Brain power can be even more devastating to you and those around you than losing an aspect of your physical health, so why wouldn’t you start to look after your Brain right away since diet and lifestyle modifications actioned NOW could save a lot of distress and heartbreak later in life.

REMEMBER: if you are taking any medications always consult a Registered Nutritional Therapist as well as your Doctor before making significant dietary or lifestyle changes.  This blog post is written for educational purposes only and in reference to ‘food’.  It is NOT advocating taking dietary supplements.  It is very important to please always consult a Registered Nutritional Therapist or your Doctor before introducing any dietary supplements into your health regime as these qualified professionals will be able to offer personalised recommendations.

If sleep, Brain, cognitive and/or memory are issues which you are struggling with and you want to discover the inspiring & sustainable diet & lifestyle programmes offered by Nutritional Therapy, get in touch via the Contact Me page on this website, or directly on info@eatdrinkthinknutrition.co.uk for more information about 1:2:1 Consultations with Eat Drink Think Nutrition®.