Bob Livingston Reports: Alzheimer’s Risk, By Mrs Vera West

I get the Bob Livingston reports by email, and to date have not been able to find them on-line in a source to reference. That being said, here is one I got which may be of interest to older readers, who just like me fear the possibility of Alzheimer's disease, a disease which strips one of memory and a sense of self. What was I saying? Oh, memory loss. The country music singer Glen Campbell was an example of this.

At present there is no mainstream medical cure for Alzheimer's disease, but some treatments to slow it down a bit. No medical advice is offered here, and this is for information purposes only, but it is stated that some studies have shown that the vitamin, niacinamide, or vitamin B 3, improves cognitive function in Alzheimer's patients. The vitamin has been known to improve memory, by increasing blood circulation in the brain. Some of the studies are described below. The vitamin is safe in appropriate doses, and I saw on Steve Kirsch's website that it may also help with glaucoma, according to a conferenced he attended.

One can buy bottles of B 3 at vitamin and chemist shops, perhaps around the $ 20 mark. I have concerns about both glaucoma and Alzheimer's so I personally will give it a shot.

"Anyone with a family legacy of Alzheimer's asks themselves, "Will this happen to me, too?"

No one wants to live out their senior years being cared for like an infant by their children. So any time I come across strong medical evidence that suggests we can lower our risks for Alzheimer's or cognitive decline in general, I share it with you.

I've been hopeful that medicine would develop one big cure. To date, they've come up flat.

But a humble vitamin, niacinamide, has been shown by researchers to improve cognitive function in Alzheimer's patients.

Niacinamide has been used for years to revive and enhance impaired memory in general. It is a safe vitamin and has been used by the public since the 1950s. Its effectiveness undoubtedly has to do with improved brain circulation. Niacin gets more oxygen to the blood, brain and tissues, which increases oxygen to the blood and opens blood vessels.

Niacin belongs to the family of B-vitamins. It's B3. The role it has in the body is to convert food into energy. It's also beneficial to the nervous system, digestive system and skin, and can raise HDL cholesterol levels.

Research has found that dietary niacin was protective against Alzheimer's disease (AD).

• One study included a few years of follow-up and took place from 1993 to 2002. The researchers found that after adjusting the results for age, gender, race, educational levels and the ApoE gene (the gene with the strongest impact for developing AD) — the study participants with the lowest food intake of niacin (an average of 12.6 mg/day) were 80 percent more likely to be diagnosed with AD than those with the highest intake (22.4 mg/day). In fact, the rate of cognitive decline among those with the highest niacin intake was 44 percent that of those with the lowest intake.
• In another study, published in Science Translational Medicine, animals given the pharmaceutical version of niacin called Niaspan had reduced brain plaque burden, loss of neurons was halted, and niacin "rescued" their working memory deficits.
• And a review of decades of research by the journal Current Nutrition Reports specifically mentioned niacin as one of the "nutritional interventions can be an effective tool for reducing risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD)."

Great sources of dietary niacin

You don't have to wait around for the pharmaceuticals to further modify niacin for their benefit. Natural niacin is already there for us to benefit from. Common foods that contain niacin include meats, legumes, nuts, enriched grains/cereals, coffee, and tea. In addition, niacin is synthesized through the conversion of tryptophan, an amino acid that constitutes about one percent of the protein in foods.

As you age, you can become prone to niacin deficiency, as we don't process nutrients very efficiently as we get older. To maintain levels, we need a bit more than food can offer. Indeed, according to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, 15 percent to 25 percent of older adults do not consume enough niacin in their diets to meet the already-low RDA (16 mg daily for men and 14 mg daily for women). Also, dietary intake of niacin decreases between the ages of 60 and 90 years. Older adults are advised to supplement their dietary intake with a multivitamin/mineral supplement, which will generally provide at least 20 mg of niacin daily.

Signs of niacin deficiency include:

• Rough skin that turns red or brown in the sun
• A bright red tongue
• Vomiting, constipation, or diarrhea
• Depression
• Headaches
• Extreme tiredness
• Aggressive, paranoid, or suicidal behavior
• Hallucinations, apathy, loss of memory

If you have a history of Alzheimer's in your family, or you are simply worried for your memory as you age, should try this simple vitamin. It is very safe in 500 milligram (mg) to 1,000 mg doses (1 gram).

However, you do need to know one thing about niacin: at higher does is causes a side effect known as flushing which, though annoying, is not considered dangerous. You do not need a high dose for your brain to benefit greatly from niacinamide B3.