With all the modern medical advancements in cures for diseases, one disease which still remains cure-less is Alzheimer’s. A degenerative illness that severely affects more than 5 million people worldwide. Some modern drugs can provide a modicum of relief for people suffering from mild memory loss; however scientists need a better understanding of the disease, and a fresh strategy for treating it. The best that we can do today is simply try to prevent Alzheimer’s, and the weapons used to prevent the oncoming of such a crippling disease are found in everyday foods. So what foods exactly are used to ward off Alzheimer’s? Here’s a quick list of the seven, most common, most accessible foods that can be used to prevent Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s disease is a crippling neurodegenerative disease that results in loss of brain function. Early symptoms are forgetfulness and impaired awareness of the events of daily life. The disease is more common the older you are and affects on average about 3.1% of Americans between 70-79 years. Certain vitamins and minerals are particularly effective at preventing possible development of Alzheimer’s. This is because these vitamins and minerals ensure a healthy heart and brain, allowing for a naturally stronger defence system which can help to ward off Alzheimer’s.

1.    Eggs: The first on our list, and one of the best foods that can help prevent Alzheimer’s is the common, everyday big breakfast ingredient the egg. Eggs provide good dietary source of choline, a major component of lecithin, the yellow fatty substance found in the egg’s yolk. This helps to repair damaged brain tissue. In addition to this they also provide good sources of iron, vitamin B12, other major vitamin B groups such as B2, great source of protein, and on top of all this, is easily digested into the system so your body can start benefiting from these ingested minerals.

2.    White Germ and whole grain breads: The second item on our list is white germ and whole grain breads, this common food has many forms of being eaten. Plain, toasted, fried, and even two together with fillings on the inside. These breads are high in Lecithin and Choline, like eggs. But also are full of other healthy components which include carbohydrates, vitamin E, many B vitamins, and numerous minerals and anti oxidants which help to prolong the onset of possible Alzheimer’s

3.    Soy Beans and Soy Products: Soy products are another great source of choline along with eggs and white germ and grain breads. They also are rich in protein, carbohydrates, calcium and fiber. Soy is also a good source of folic acid; also know as, folate acid. Soy is also known to lower blood levels of homocysteine. Soy products basically can break up deadly amyloid protein that forms fibrous deposits in the brains of potential Alzheimer’s patients.

4.    Blueberries: Blueberries, apart from being blue and extraordinarily tasty, Blueberries are one of the best foods, that when consumed help at preventing the onset of Alzheimer’s. This is due to their high concentration of vitamin C in comparison to other vitamin C rich foods like oranges, guava, and kiwi fruit. This helps to ensure a healthy brain which in turn can slow the development of Alzheimer’s. Blueberries also contain a lot of anti-oxidants which can help fight the onset of the ageing process as well, such as wrinkles appearing and prolonged memory.

5.    Orange Colored Fruits and Vegetables: Orange colored fruits and vegetables, such as oranges, carrots and pumpkins, in comparison contain a lot more antioxidants, than other colored fruits and vegetables. These antioxidants are primarily vitamins A, C, and E. Scientists believe that the best way to sustaining a healthy brain to fight off Alzheimer’s disease is to have a healthy heart, pumping lots of blood to the brain. Vitamin A can help contribute to a healthy heart by immensely reducing the risk of heart disease. The vitamin C in the orange fruit and vegetables helps to fight off the build up of cholesterol, which can allow more flow of blood to the head, resulting in higher brain hydration.

 
6.    Fish: The second last on the list and also one of the stronger foods which help to fight off the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The more fish or omega 3 enriched eggs you eat, the better chance you have to avoid Alzheimer’s disease years down the road. This is because Alzheimer’s patients are found to have lower blood levels of docosahexaenoic acid, aka DHA, than people with normal cognitive functioning. DHA is an Omega 3 fatty acid that is already known to reduce heart disease, depression and attention deficit disorder; however it has recently been discovered to help fight off Alzheimer’s disease as well. The best sorts of fish to eat are particularly salmon and tuna, as these fish are the most Omega 3 fat packed.

7.    Turmeric: The last on our list is probably by far also the best culinary delight at preventing the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Turmeric. Turmeric for those who do not know it, is the yellow substance in curry powder that gives curry powder its unique flavor. Epidemiologists have noted that cultures consuming large amounts of turmeric have extremely low incidence of Alzheimer’s in their senior population. India, for example, whose population uses turmeric as both a herbal medicine and a cooking ingredient, has less than one quarter of cases in that of the U.S, despite having well over 3 times the population of the U.S, and the lack of quality of life in India compared to the U.S. Turmeric comes from the Curcuma Longa plant which can be found in many parts of South Asian countries.

There you have it, 7 common foods that can be used to battle and prevent the on set the Alzheimer’s disease.

Western diseases have been dispersed across the globe since the age of exploration. When European troops alighted in the new world, they brought with them all kinds of infectious diseases that devastated the native populations of Asia and the Americas. Back then, the so-called “afflictions of affluence” that originated in the West were syphilis and influenza. Many centuries later, the conditions suffered by the rich have evolved into chronic conditions that take years to develop and will not be cured.

Changing lifestyles have made cancer and diabetes the new silent killers, which take lives in wealthy countries while impoverished nations deal with infections. The United Nations has focused on combating infectious diseases to improve life in developing countries. However, as the public health and quality of life improves in low-income countries, the chronic illnesses that once plagued only the richest countries are now becoming the most serious threat in poor countries as well.

Afflictions like diabetes, heart disease and cancer are all a product of the modern lifestyle: inactivity as a result of urbanization and a general disregard for health. Poor diets, smoking and increasing pollution also contribute. As a result, developed countries must invest funds in treatment and research in order to combat these incurable maladies.

Malaria, tuberculosis, measles and cholera are all big problems in poor countries, though can be easily controlled with inoculation and treatment. These “ailments of poverty” used to be the most ominous health concerns in poor countries, but chronic conditions have recently surpassed infections as the biggest global killer. Nevertheless, worldwide health organizations are focusing on infections as an impediment to development rather than trying to institute preventative measures for the chronic afflictions that accompany this modern world.

Perhaps the most pivotal issue in the evolution and spread of chronic conditions is that these diseases hit younger and kill more quickly in lower-income countries than in middle- or high-income countries. Currently, chronic ailments account for half of the illnesses in poor nations, which is a huge drain on the health system and labor force. Because of inferior health infrastructure and lower general well-being, chronic diseases take their toll more easily than in countries where people have a good diet and the aid of knowledgeable physicians. Africa is the only continent where more people die from infectious diseases than from chronic ones. Health officials estimate that by 2015 chronic disease will be the top killer globally.

In 2005, three quarters of the deaths from chronic afflictions occurred in poor countries. This shows that international awareness needs to shift in a different direction. Rather than focusing on infection as a threat, authorities need to start targeting prevention and treatment of chronic ailments. People are living longer, getting fatter and smoking more in poor countries, resulting in rapidly escalating numbers of patients with diabetes and cancer. The trend is reversing in rich countries, where people are taking better care of their bodies and ridding their lives of cigarettes.

So why does it remain that people are more concerned with bird flu than with hypertension? Ostensibly, it may be because infections are simpler to treat, usually with immunization or drugs, and chronic diseases require long-term management. But as the world continues to develop and lifestyles evolve, more resources must be allocated to care for these chronic diseases as they eclipse infections as a threat to world health.

A recent study by an American team of researchers has discovered that obesity can be spread like a virus within a network of friends. Based on a pool of data containing more than 12,000 participants, investigators concluded that people were more likely to become what is considered “obese” if they had a friend who was overweight. This conclusion may explain the cause of the climbing rates of obesity across America. This phenomenon carries serious repercussions for insurance companies and health organizations in the United States. Obesity is also quickly becoming an issue for individuals, because there are so many health problems associated with being obese that overweight people are having difficulty obtaining insurance coverage.

The data analyzed in this study included 32 years of information about a community of over 12,000 people from a small town in Massachusetts. The data was originally collected as part of an examination of the causes of heart disease. Each member of a family that participated in the study also gave the name of one close friend (for contact purposes). From this data, the researchers were able to recreate an interconnected web that helped them track the spread of obesity over time.

The method used to determine the weight categories of each participant was a value-calculation method known as Body mass index (BMI). This is an objective measure of height-to-weight that gives an indication of whether an individual is underweight, normal weight, overweight or obese. The BMI percentage is calculated by dividing weight (kg) by height squared (meters squared).

BMI ranges:

• Below 18.5: Underweight
• 18.5 to 25: Healthy
• 25 to 30: Overweight
• 30 to 40: Obese
• Above 40: Morbidly Obese

Using a history of the health and weight of these 12,000 individuals, the research team was able to observe that the changing BMI of a person over more than three decades was often closely related to the BMI of their close family and friends. Family members who gained weight often influenced each other, but the correlation was much stronger with friends. The principal cause was that friends often change each others’ perception of what comprises an acceptable body type. If a close friend puts on a lot of weight, it is easy for a person to accept their own weight gain, and is therefore become more likely to grow larger without realizing it.

The researchers’ initial figure about the spread of obesity is that a person’s chance of becoming obese will increase by 57% if they have a friend who becomes obese. If a close mutual friend is obese, the chance of becoming obese as well skyrockets to 171%. The investigators point to this conclusion as one of the factors for American’s growing obese population. People are catching it from one another. These findings are quite an achievement in the field of medical sociology, pairing body image with social contact and perception.

The researchers described the spread of obesity as a similar to a viral contagion in the way that it traveled through the wide social network that was part of the study. Some of the researchers involved in the study have gone so far as to describe obesity as an epidemic, since the condition can spread very rapidly. The reason that some describe this phenomenon as an epidemic is because the weight gained was often just a small amount that pushed an individual from a BMI that indicates “overweight” to one that indicates “obese.”

While many social scientists find this to be a groundbreaking study, other medical professionals don’t trust what they see as a hasty and somewhat anecdotal conclusion. Key in this assessment is the use of BMI as an indicator of health. The BMI, some say, is not a reliable indicator of health. It fails to take into account many factors, such as body type or lifestyle. For example, if a person is athletic, it is likely that their BMI will be higher because the value cannot differentiate between muscle weight and what is strictly fat. BMI is unable to distinguish between types of tissue and body structure that make up weight, and can often result in more skewed BMIs. Also, people of a short stature often have a lower BMI, even when the actual fat percentage of their physique might be higher than a larger person. A more accurate gauge of obesity, some argue, is simply measuring the waist circumference of a potentially overweight person.

BMI can be used as an indicator for health risks if the value is on either end of the BMI spectrum. Percentages below 18.5 usually indicate a serve eating disorder such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. Percentages above the “normal weight” range of 18.5 to 25 can usually indicate an increased threat of heart disease, particularly for older individuals. Even higher BMIs will be accompanied by other health concerns, such as hypertension and diabetes.

The condition of obesity is defined as the point past which fatty tissue in humans is increased to an unhealthy point. Obesity can arise from genetic determinants, lifestyle choice, certain illnesses, and neurobiological mechanisms. Another factor, social determinants, is becoming an increasingly popular explanation for a growing obese population worldwide. In the United States, obesity is becoming a public health concern.

Out of all developed countries worldwide, the United States has the largest obese population. This is a growing public health concern because obesity in American has been increasing steadily since the mid-1980s. Some people blame this on environmental causes, as many see a changing American economy and culture and a direct influence on the change in lifestyle that has inspired such a drastic demographic change.

Environmental factors that have likely been the cause of the growing obese population:

• Sedentary lifestyle
• Declining cost of food
• Changing workforce
• Increasing wealth
• An aging population
• The rise in popularity of fast food
• Urban sprawl.

Health risks that arise from obesity:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol

In some cases, obese individuals are also afflicted gastrointestinal conditions, strain of the musculoskeletal system, stroke, asthma, and depression. These are all severe, potentially fatal conditions that may continue to afflict an individual even after they have returned to a healthy BMI. Due to the myriad of potential health risks that accompany people with weight problems, insurance companies are hesitant to take on new policyholders if they already have a BMI in an unsafe range.

In America and all over the world, a growing obese population means a strain on the global health care infrastructure that will lead to future challenges in providing care that is necessary for unhealthy BMIs. Insurance companies are trying to avoid being liable for a great number of these complications, and often reject applicants who rank too high in body mass index. Obesity is a problem for people all over the world, and a contagious one, at that.