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weir: alzheimer’s prevention begins in perimenopause
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shirley weir is the founder of menopause chicks.
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a decade or so ago, i started joking with my husband. “i think i have dementia,†i said. “please get me a nice room.â€
but i wasn’t really joking.
i would forget that i let the dog out. i was forgetting the names of colleagues mid-sentence. and once, i got off a plane and drove straight home forgetting i had a suitcase to claim.
i was in perimenopause at the time, my stress level was high and my aging mother was showing signs of forgetfulness and confusion too.
i was (and continue to be) genuinely concerned for my brain health.
two-thirds of clinically diagnosed cases of dementia and alzheimer’s disease are in women. statistically, a woman in her sixties is two times more likely to develop alzheimer’s than breast cancer. i’m 53 and on the hunt for what i can do now to delay or prevent this disease from wreaking havoc on my later years.
dr. karen parmar is a naturopathic physician, co-founder and medical director at integrated health clinic in fort langley, b.c. she focuses on women’s hormonal health and has both a professional and personal passion for researching preventative strategies for women’s brain health. her grandmother was diagnosed with alzheimer’s in her late sixties.
menopause chicks:
dr. parmar, when it comes to alzheimer’s disease, you say there is good news and bad news for women. should we start with the bad news?
dr. karen parmar: that’s correct — and i believe it’s important women are aware of both the good and bad in order to prioritize their own brain health.
the bad news is that while science can keep women alive longer, too many of us are facing looming statistics when it comes to dementia and alzheimer’s. the majority of all dementia cases are in women. there is no treatment or cure, and not enough research.
wow. when you think about the number of women and families this will impact, it’s devastating. so what’s the good news?
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exactly. it does have the potential to be devastating. however, the good news is, from my research, there are three key factors that show significant promise in the reduction of developing alzheimer’s.
you may be thinking i’m going to say exercise and good eating habits. that is something i recommend for all my patients. however, the research isn’t yet showing any marked reductions in dementia prevention with those lifestyle modifications alone.
what is showing significant promise is omega 3 fish oils (1200 mg daily), sleep and estrogen therapy.
in a new article in the journal of alzheimer’s disease, researchers have found that for patients with high omega 3 levels, blood flow is in specific areas of the brain is increased. and in other studies, supplementing with omega 3 has shown some increases in cognitive function.
sleep is also essential. research suggests that chronic sleep deprivation (less than six hours per night) may increase the risk of alzheimer’s and dementia. i recommend seven to eight hours per night—unmedicated. avoid gravol, nytol or other medications as they don’t give your brain the healing sleep it needs. discuss the benefits of natural sleep remedies such as melatonin, magnesium or cbd with your health care provider.
the third key factor in alzheimer’s prevention in women is estrogen. when a woman reaches menopause —â the average age is 51 — she experiences a 99 per cent drop in her estrogen levels. because estrogen is fundamental to the learning and memory functions of our brains, this potentially explains the increased prevalence of alzheimer’s in women compared to men.
because women live for 30 to 40 years or more beyond menopause, it behooves us to have a conversation with our health care providers about the long-term benefits of estrogen replacement therapy (hormone replacement therapy).
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there are a lot of misconceptions about the risks and benefits of hormone replacement therapy. i will cover this more in-depth in next week’s column.
shirley weir is the founder of menopause chicks, an online facebook community that advocates for women in perimenopause, menopause & beyond! she is also the author of mokita: how to navigate perimenopause with confidence & ease. @menopausechicks
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