The Alzheimer's Antidote: Using a Low-Carb, High-Fat Diet to Fight Alzheimer’s Disease, Memory Loss, and Cognitive Decline
S**R
Proactive Success
Since I have one of the two Alzheimer gene alleles, and being in my late sixties, I decided to see if there was anything pro-active I could do to reduce my Alzheimer's risk. I was already following the usual recommendations of eating and sleeping well, keeping fit and socially active, etc. My first book was Dale Bredesen's "The End of Alzheimers". It had a lot of new ideas and suggestions, but I found the recommended protocol was overly complex and expensive to implement. Despite this, I selected portions of it that I thought might help, and began implementing them. Going on a ketogenic diet was not one of the suggestions I tried.Awhile later (July, 2020) I discovered Amy's book, and found it to be much more focused and clearly explained. Her description of the probable cause of dementia (inadequate ability of the brain to process carbs for energy as we age) and likely antidote (a ketogenic diet to provide a new source of brain energy) struck me as very credible. So I immediately started the diet, ensuring I ate 70% of daily calories from fat, keeping carbs to 25 mg daily, and the rest of my calories from protein.Within a few months I was surprised to find my memory becoming much more clear. I say "surprised" because I didn't think I even had any memory deficits. As the months have slipped by, I even have started remembering random events from childhood that I had totally forgotten. Needless to say, I'm convinced that the ketogenic diet is a key, if not the main key, for rejuvenating the brain and protecting against dementia.As far as the challenge of sticking to a ketogenic diet, and missing carbs, I didn't find the transition very hard - though the desire for sweet fruit, pasta, bread, and desserts continued for awhile, after a year or so they weakened and now are mostly gone. I do find certain keto desserts meet my occasional desire for a sweet, which I satisfy with keto-friendly foods like Rebel ice cream, which is sweetened with xylitol, or very dark chocolate, neither of which elevate my blood sugar. Most of my dietary fat comes from olive oil, avocado oil, cheese, nuts, and the fat in meats. A smoothie I have most days is as good as a milk shake, to my taste buds: 1 tbsp flax seeds, 1/4 cup frozen mixed berries, 3 tbsp of olive oil, 30 grams of protein powder, and a cup or so of unsweetened almond milk. I put these in a power blender for 15 seconds, and it's ready to drink.I highly recommend this book. I do believe it has guided me to a real Alzheimer's antidote.
A**D
A fantastic book that is as important as it is a pleasure to read!
A fantastic book! I watched Amy's video that I found scientific at a very comfortable level (I am a scientist) so I was wondering about the way the book was going to be written. I must say it is written very similarly to how the video presentation went: pure pleasure, not too low and not too high in style and language. Very enjoyable.While I have not yet finished the book, I grab every minute of wait anywhere to read a page or two, so far my overall impression is that this book should be read by all. One need not have a friend or relative with Alzheimer's to be educated about diabetes mellitus (type 2) leading to Alzheimer's and other health conditions, as well as why scientists searching for the cause of Alzheimer's along the beta amyloid plaques are likely looking at symptom, rather than cause, and why most everyone would benefit from a reduced carbohydrate diet.She also explains how diabetes mellitus starts by insulin resistance of each organ separately rather than the whole body at once--this is known to all doctors and scientists (at least I hope it is known) yet still only the A1C blood test is offered for insulin resistance, which doesn't show any problems until insulin resistance is systemic. Amy also explains how important it is to start eating "right" (low carbs) from early age of 20s and 30s because the changes in the brain/body occur so slowly that by the time symptoms appear, it may be much harder to fix or too late. Prevention is the key.I highly recommend this book for everyone who wants to plan a healthy feature with healthy longevity.
L**W
Absolute Must-Read
My mother passed away with no memory and no leg muscles, the result of a double-whammy effect of the officially mandated low-fat, high-carb diet and statin drugs to lower her cholesterol. This experience intensified my search for information on health through nutrition, and in the process I have found out that we have been led down the wrong dietary path for decades. The ghastly effects of this mess we've been eating is appalling, and research is finally catching up.Amy Berger has done an absolutely bang-up job of presenting the most up-to-date information available that demonstrates the dangers of the low-fat, high-carb diet, and conversely, the huge benefits of the reverse- a high-fat, low-carb diet. This book is a very comprehensive work that covers the fallout from eating the way we've been told to eat for decades, how to change all that, and considers the situations that many face including care-givers for those in managed care (nursing homes) and those who prefer a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. It's one-stop-shopping that combines information available in separate books on some of the basics of nutrition, the cholesterol myth, the dangers of statins, the dangers of the low-fat, high-carb diet and food and cooking recommendations as well as other lifestyle factors.I have read quite a few nutrition/health books over the years, and some are a bit more technical than I can drag myself through, but Amy has presented the information in a way that anyone can understand. Body chemistry is unbelievably complicated, making the processes involved rather difficult to explain, but I found this one easy to understand. I've been known to glaze over and skip to the bottom line at the end of the chapter, but I didn't have to do that with this one.There is some serious myth-busting here. Cholesterol causes heart disease? Busted! Statins for heart health? Busted! Dietary fat makes you fat? Busted! Saturated fats are evil? Busted! We desperately need to shift our thinking where our eating is concerned. Sugar and carb addictions have turned us into people that live to eat rather than people that eat to live. If you want to find out what you can do to save your brain and practical advice on eating to live and staying out of the Alzheimer's unit, get your copy now!
K**E
Got exactly what I paid for!
Heard about this book on a podcast, found it on Amazon, used. Shipped fast and was in great condition!
A**É
Perfeito
Ótimo, chegou dentro do prazo e bem embalado!
C**P
I feared Alzheimer but not anymore
If you fear Alzheimer or if you have a love one plagued by the disease, read this book. It is well documented, well written, comprehensive and contains some useful information for prevention and treatment with an integrative approach with cooking, diet and supplements. Hint : the Alzheimer care facilities are dead wrong with the food they give to their patients. Hopefully some health professionals will read this book and realize their mistakes for the better.
D**Y
Useful and interesting
Interesting relationship between dementia and our modern diet
B**N
A valuable information source and toolkit for a dreadful disease
The target audience for this book includes medical practitioners, dietitians, people at risk of getting Alzheimer's disease, and carers for people who already have it. Also, perhaps academics needing an update on the topic, and even people who are themselves already displaying early symptoms, for example mild cognitive impairment, but are still able to read this book.The content isn't tailored perfectly to any one of these. Medical practitioners and academics might appreciate the science, but want a more concise document. Carers might appreciate the way the book describes matters a number of times from slightly different points of view, but (initially) care less about the scientific details. I haven't marked it down for this. It is easy to skip things that are not (currently) of interest, but much harder to cater for things that are not in the book at all.It would be useful if this book were required reading by medical practitioners and dietitians. Doctors and nurses would be better equipped to suggest interventions rather than "get your affairs in order". Dietitians would appreciate the power and safety of the ketogenic diet, which many of them don't understand at the moment.A book on this topic published in 10 years time will be significantly more advanced. For example, it will include material about the influence of the microbiome, (gut bacteria). But most of the target audience don't have the luxury of waiting even 5 years. They need to act NOW, but with reasonable confidence that they are not wasting time (or making things worse) with "fads". The included and cited scientific material (more than 30 pages of citations) shows that this is not based on "fads", and there is also a substantial amount of practical advice, far more than simply food/diet. Sleep, stress, exercise, etc, are all covered.I am in the category "people at risk of getting Alzheimer's disease", and I am taking this book very seriously indeed. Hence the 5 stars.
M**Y
intelligent and clearly communicated - all the qualities I enjoy ...
This book grabs your attention right from the first page.....captivating, interesting, personable, intelligent and clearly communicated - all the qualities I enjoy with Amy's professional writing style. It engages you from the first words and you cannot put it down.As a professional working with both people struggling with the onset of this disease and their family members, I cannot recommend this book highly enough! It will be invaluable to people who are struggling with this insidious disease, and for their loved ones as they care for them.I would also recommend this book to every medical practitioner on the planet.This book also provides hope for those who wish to prevent developing this disease in later life.Written in layman's terms, this book explores the difficult concepts around how Alzheimer's Disease (AD) begins, and what happens inside the brain when AD strikes. In not only covers AD, but also diabetes, insulin resistance and cholesterol issues.Amy explores in detail how eating a low carb and high fat diet can stop this disease in it's tracks, and in some cases, even reverse some symptoms in some people. This scientific exploration of how our body is fueled and where we have gone wrong with dietary recommendations in the past is both eye-opening and exciting as Amy shows us how to change our future, our health and the health of both ourselves and our families.On my coffee table at home, and on my desk at work, this is a book I recommend to all my clients, and to all my friends.This book offers a road map to aging healthfully with our mental faculties intact! I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
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