Alzheimers Disease And Alternative Medicine Exploring The Options

Alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a debilitating and ultimately fatal condition with no known cause or cure. The FDA-approved medications that doctors prescribe can only slow not stop the disease process, leaving patients grasping for an alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. While alternative medicine is becoming more and more widely accepted and regulated in this country today, it is still risky for the people who turn to it. Manufacturers of alternative medicines are not beholden to the FDA, so they don’t have to provide scientific research for their claims, maintain any standard of safety or honesty in the production of their products, or report any side effects or deaths that occur as a result of their products. Given such caveats, patients must carefully consider their options before seeking any alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.

If patients or their loved ones do decide to seek an alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, however, a number of options exist. Three well-known dietary supplements that can be found on the shelves of health food stores across America are coenzyme Q10, gingko biloba and coral calcium. Coenzyme Q10, known as an antioxidant, naturally regulates cell function in humans, but the synthetic form used in research studies did not significantly improve the functioning of Alzheimer’s patients. Another antioxidant ginkgo biloba, well-known plants extract and mainstay of Chinese medicine has been said to improve cell function in both the body and brain. Research did find that the supplement had a positive effect on Alzheimer’s patients, but it also functions as a blood thinner, which can be dangerous when taken in conjunction with other blood thinners, such as aspirin. Finally, coral calcium, which is a calcium supplement with the addition of the crushed shells of sea creatures, has been touted by its makers as a miracle cure and denounced by the FDA as a ruse. Research on the beneficial effects of the minerals in coral calcium does not support its makers’ claims.

Two less well known drugs that patients may turn to as an alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease are huperzine A and Phosphatidylserine. Huperzine A is an ancient Chinese remedy with chemical properties similar to FDA-approved Alzheimer’s drugs. Studies are being done on huperzine A by the National Institute on Aging to determine the drug’s effectiveness in treating less severe cases of Alzheimer’s disease, but at this point in time, the FDA urges caution when taking the natural remedy, especially in conjunction with other Alzheimer’s drugs. Phosphatidylserine is a building block of neurons in the brain, and supplementing the natural substance was thought to potentially reverse the disease process in patients with Alzheimer’s. Studies using phosphatidylserine from cow neurons were halted, however, at the outbreak of mad cow disease in the last decade, and research has only recently resumed. More studies will need to be done before phosphatidylserine can be considered a viable alternative treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. By further exploring alternative treatment options, scientists can offer patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and their families hope for the future and a possible cure.


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