Senior Health – Alzheimer’s Disease and Magnesium

In the U.S and Canada, approximately 10% of the population over sixty and 50% over eighty-five suffer from Alzheimer’s. It is associated with severe memory loss…

…impaired thinking and reasoning, and inability to carry out activities of daily life.

Alzheimer’s disease should be diagnosed only when all other identifiable brain conditions are ruled out such as brain tumor, alcoholism, vitamin B12 deficiency, mercury poisoning, depression, hypothyroidism, Parkinson’s, stroke, excessive prescription drug use, malnutrition and dehydration. Dr. Abram Hoffer, the founder of orthomolecular medicine along with Linus Pauling, cautions that almost half the cases of what is assumed to be Alzheimer’s may in fact be dementias caused by such treatable conditions as simple dehydration, prescription drug intoxication, severe cerebral allergies to foods or chemicals, or chronic nutrient deficiencies. Drugs that worsen Alzheimer’s include chlorpromazine, antihistamines, barbiturates, psychotropic drugs and diuretics.

Chemicals and toxic metals are associated with Alzheimer’s disease, especially mercury and aluminum. Mercury can be absorbed into the brain from dental mercury fillings, by taking flu shots which are preserved with mercury or from habitually eating fish contaminated with mercury.

Magnesium can help detoxify heavy metals and even ones as poisonous as mercury.

If you eat from aluminum pots, use aluminum-containing antiperspirants, take antacids, drink sodas or beer from aluminum cans, wrap your food in aluminum foil and drink tap water with high aluminum content, the levels of aluminum in your body could overwhelm your magnesium levels and aluminum will be absorbed instead. This may be responsible for the buildup of aluminum associated with Alzheimer’s.

Considerable research has proven that brain neurons affected in Alzheimer’s disease have significantly higher levels of aluminum than normal neurons. Alzheimer’s patients also have consistently low magnesium levels in the area of the brain most damaged by Alzheimer’s.  Aluminum is able to replace magnesium in certain enzyme systems in the body, mimicking its function but causing harm. Aluminum can also replace magnesium in the brain , which leaves calcium channels in the brain nerve cells wide open, allowing calcium to flood in, causing cell death. (1)

References:

1. Andrasi E et al., Disturbances of magnesium concentrations in various brain areas in Alzheimer’s disease. Magnes Res, vol. 13, no 3, pp. 189-196, 2000.