The eight-week cure for “diabetes of the brain”

After yesterday’s discussion about the insidious role that anticholinergic drugs play in dementia, I thought you could use a little ray of hope—and some much-needed motivation to take your brain’s health back into your own hands.

Because here’s the truth: While it may seem like the world is working against you, there’s still a lot you can do to defend yourself. And as one recent study shows, it doesn’t even take much to tap into this protection.

You just have to get up and get moving. Literally.

Eight weeks to a healthier brain

German researchers recruited 22 sedentary adults who were either overweight or obese—with an average body mass index (BMI) of 31—and gave them two brain scans. One before completing an eight-week exercise program, which featured basic activities like cycling and walking. And one after.

The researchers measured brain responses to an insulin nasal spray. They also assessed for other key factors—including cognition, mood, and metabolic markers. The goal was to see whether they could improve subjects’ cognitive health by boosting insulin sensitivity in their brains.

And here’s what they found: While the eight-week exercise program only resulted in modest weight loss, the benefits to subjects’ brains were big.

Brain-based metabolic functions normalized, for one. But physical activity also boosted blood flow to areas of the brain that deal with dopamine-mediated, reward-based learning and motor processes. And subjects reported subsequent improvements in both mood and task-switching—a combination that points to higher executive function overall.

Also worth noting: Results showed that greater improvements in brain function correlated with higher losses of belly fat. (Hardly surprising, given what we know about the inflammatory nature of visceral fat.)

Defeating diabetes of the brain

I’ve mentioned the term “diabetes of the brain” here before—but now seems like a good time to revisit the concept.

Research shows that the Standard American Diet (SAD) can lead to changes in brain chemistry, especially when it comes to energy and food intake regulation. (That might be one reason why bad eating habits die hard.)

But high-sugar diets also impair your brain’s cognitive abilities (like memory and attention) and reward processes—which means that food choices may actually play a starring role in diagnoses like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and even Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Science certainly supports this connection. In fact, we now know that AD impedes your brain’s ability to use sugar for energy—causing glucose metabolism to drop by as much as 40 percent in some areas.

This energy loss, in turn, leads to both the structural and cognitive dysfunction we associate with dementia.

So it only makes sense that helping to restore your brain’s insulin sensitivity might also help to prevent or even reverse some of these symptoms. And regular exercise is only one simple way to do it.

Following a ketogenic diet, like my A-List Diet, is another effective strategy. And there are even more simple changes you can make—all of which I’ve outlined, step by step, in my Drug-Free Protocol for Reversing Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

To learn more, or to enroll in this online learning tool today, click here. Because you have absolutely nothing to lose… and years of razor-sharp brain health to reclaim.

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“Exercise improves brain function in overweight and obese individuals.” Science Daily, 07/09/2019. (sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190709171815.htm)