Reverse Cognitive Decline

You want to be sharper in business, feel younger, or stop the deterioration? Whether it's simply overwhelm, an aging brain, an afflicted trauma victim, or someone with Parkinson's or dementia and Alzheimer's, there's an answer. All neurodegenerative disorders are fueled by wanton inflammation (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2814458/). So they all have a simple cure.

Though the exact pathology is different from one individual to the next, the centerpiece never changes: the immune system has been activated unhealthily for far too long. Why? Partly the person spends no time in autophagy. Partly this is constant insulin elevation. Partly this is long periods of environmental stressors (toxins, metals, mold, etc.). But they all drive down into the same fire burning from within the patient: inflammation. The individual once or currently continuously signals the body to have elevated glucose and/or insulin and/or white blood cell count and/or no recovery (the natural turnover of old cells for new ones).

This can be due to living a stressful emotional life. It can be due to constantly eating refined foods or high carbohydrate intake. It can be due to never going significant periods of fasting. It can be due to lack of physical activity. It can be insufficient sleep. It can heavy be metal toxicity. It can be long periods of drug therapies (even the allegedly "safe" ones). It can be excess bodyfat. It's often all of the above.

Therefore, the cure is simple but not easy. It's a matter of reducing or removing all the factors which create a perpetual state of stress and inflammation. Some variables are easier to control than others. But all of them can be influenced.

The data is in, and fasting glucose above 85 is indicative of growing brain damage and other organ destruction (the leading cause of blindness is uncontrolled blood sugar). Simply adding medium chain fats to the diet can reduce the damage. Dr. Mary Newport showed that her husband with advanced Alzheimer's reversed his condition with the addition of coconut oil (which contains these medium chain fats). Her husband's initial incredible improvements are shown below.

Coconut oil contains within it medium chain fatty acids which can be easily converted into a fuel (ketones) which works independent of insulin and glucose. Thus, the addition of medium chain fats decrease systemic stress load and body inflammation is lessened. Unfortunately, this is just the beginning of the work to be done (i.e. - we still have to remove all of the items which are producing the inflammation; we can't just offer the non-inflammatory fuel source of ketones). As such, though profound, Dr. Newport's work was unable to continue dramatically improving her husband's inevitable decline. But it did stave off the worst of the affliction for a good amount of time. Additional insights can still be found at her website: https://coconutketones.com/

This isn't quackery. It's in the literature. We have been able to improve the situation for people with MS, ALS, severe brain trauma, dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and general cognitive decline. Nutritional ketosis gets it done: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3219306/. And the addition of ketones can restore brain function: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2367001/.

Dr. Terry Wahls was able to reverse her own advanced MS more or less completely: https://terrywahls.com/about/about-terry-wahls/. She took a more holistic approach than Dr. Newport by looking not just at the addition of medium chain fats in order to bypass the inflammation which occurs in the brain due to carbohydrate intake. She went further into the micronutrient needs, such as those provided by cruciferous vegetables. How much additional intake? Try 9-12 cups.

These clinicians took an approach of addition. However, sufficient impact only comes from subtraction. There is mounting scientific evidence that total starvation may be the only hope for certain individuals. Some cell clearance systems in the body, especially those which clear out plaques in the brain associated with cognitive decline, are absent until someone is in a fasted-enough state. In studies, symptoms of Alzheimer's stop when the subjects fast: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3946160/.

People live longer with fasting. They suffer less cognitive decline. The brain improves actually. Again, this is not a big surprise, since the fast obligates the body to not only make its own ketones, but also use them (something which doesn't occur for some people until they've been fasting for days). Sometimes you have to go without in order to work better with what you already have.

An ideal protocol could look something like 3-10 days of fasting with the addition of only water and minerals, followed by another 3-10 days with only the addition of ketone salts and/or coconut oil or other short and medium chain fats. Obviously physical activity cannot be overlooked (brain derived neutrophic factor, the key to growing new neurons, won't be around in spades until you exercise). Thereafter, the lifestyle should really be focused on moving, strengthening, and eating whole food which is nutrient dense, whether this be greens, healthy fats and/or high quality protein sources. Get off medications. Manage stress. Stop eating grains, fruits, sugars, starches.

Then...
Reverse Cognitive Decline.