brain health Archives - Hormones Matter

Decreasing the Risk of Alzheimer’s with Vitamin D

Published on July 6, 2015

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As a health writer, I must ask if adequate vitamin D can prevent and/or treat the progressive brain disease called Alzheimer’s. No one should have to endure Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a deadly cognitive disorder that the Alzheimer’s Association® claims cannot be prevented or cured.

Staggering Statistics

The number of Alzheimer’s patients is growing at an alarming rate. Nearly 44 million people worldwide have developed AD, according to Alzheimer’s Disease International. Moreover, incidences of the deadly disease are expected to increase significantly over the next decade.

About 5.3 million Americans have AD. In fact, at least three persons living in the United States will develop AD before you finish reading this brief article. Yes, every 67 seconds another American succumbs to Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia. (1)

The medical community’s views about why the prevalence of AD is rising at a staggering rate remain varied. Many believe genetics and environmental pollutants may serve as risk factors. Some believe the predominance of vitamin D deficiency may be linked to the mounting incidences of AD. In fact, scientific research indicates that the majority of Alzheimer patients have low levels of vitamin D.

But first, let’s understand what happens to the brain when Alzheimer’s strikes it.

The Brain on Alzheimer’s

The sheer complexity of the human brain is daunting. A healthy adult brain contains approximately 100 billion nerve cells, called neurons, which connect at more than 100 trillion points in the central nervous system.

The adverse effects of Alzheimer’s on the brain are obvious to medical personnel interpreting the images. First, the brain of an AD patient is smaller than one of a healthy adult. The decreased brain size is a result of the brain tissue containing significantly fewer neurons. Second, abnormal clusters of amyloid-beta protein fragments, called plaques, collect between nerve cells in the brain. Thirdly, dead or dying neurons, called tangles, are visibly present in the brain of an AD patient.

Signals traveling through the brain’s extensive neural network form the basis of memories, thoughts, and feelings. When plaques and tangles develop in the brain, the signaling essential to cognitive function becomes disrupted. Moreover, the brain cells are destroyed, resulting in progressive cognitive issues including memory loss, poor decision-making and behavioral problems.

Vitamin D’s Beneficial Effects on the Brain

Vitamin D crosses the blood-brain barrier. And every one of the 100 billion or so neurons in the brain includes a vitamin D receptor (VDR) that influences cognitive health.

In order to regulate specific brain functions, the VDR in these cells must be turned on by receiving activated vitamin D. Without sufficient vitamin D to activate its receptors, the neurons cannot work properly.

Activated vitamin D affects the development of neurons as well as their maintenance and survival, by regulating the synthesis of nerve growth factor.

Remember those plaques and tangles that disrupt the brain’s intricate signaling system? The neuro-protective effects of this vitamin also include the modulation of signal stability within the brain’s complex neural network.

Recent Research Links Vitamin D Deficiency and Alzheimer’s

An abundance of research connects vitamin D deficiency, a condition that is highly prevalent in adults aged 65 years and above, to cognitive decline. So I explored recent research to learn more about the association.

International experts gathered at an invitational summit on “Vitamin D and Cognition in Older Adults” to provide “clear” guidance to researchers and clinicians about the role of vitamin D in Alzheimer’s. They agreed that vitamin D deficiency (a blood serum level < 30ng/mL or 75 nmol/L) increases the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in adults aged 65 and older. Their report was published in the January 2015 edition of the prestigious Journal of Internal Medicine.

Dutch researchers reviewed medical literature about vitamin D’s association with cognition in older adults. They found “emerging evidence that suggests a beneficial role for vitamin D in brain physiology.” The researchers noted associations between higher blood serum vitamin D levels and better cognitive performance. The reviewers’ findings were presented in the January 2015 issue of the journal Current Opinion of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care.

Sir Michael J. Berridge, an eminent physiologist and biochemist, conducted a study at The Babraham Institute in the United Kingdom that was published in the June 1, 2015 edition of the journal Biochemical Society Transactions. His research suggests that vitamin D is the “guardian” of signaling stability. By examining vitamin D’s role in the constancy of the Ca2+ (calcium) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling pathways, Berridge postulated the necessity of activated vitamin D to maintain the normal function of these critical, intracellular “cross-talk” molecules. He concluded that “a decline in vitamin D levels will lead to erosion of this signaling stability,” suggesting that a plethora of diseases linked to vitamin D deficiency are also associated with a dysregulation in both Ca2+ and ROS signaling.

Bolster Your Brain with Vitamin D

The statistics of escalating rates of Alzheimer’s suggest that your life—in some way—will most likely be impacted this deadly disease.

A breakthrough study, published June 24, 2015 in the online version of the journal Neurology, revealed that Alzheimer’s may develop 20 years before any symptoms appear. These findings suggest that we may be able to prevent this deadly disease. They also indirectly hint at the need for humans to be vitamin D-rich throughout life.

Considering the association between vitamin D deficiency and Alzheimer’s, I encourage readers to consider seriously daily supplementation with vitamin D3 and its partners, magnesium and vitamin K2.

Perhaps Michael F. Holick, MD, PhD, one of the world’s leading experts, said it best: He concluded in an article on brain health, published in a 2015 issue of the Journal of Internal Medicine by stating, “There is no downside to increasing vitamin D status for all by encouraging vitamin D supplementation and sensible sun exposure.”

Footnote 1: “Dementia” encompasses a spectrum of brain-related diseases including Alzheimer’s.

About the Author: Susan Rex Ryan, author of the award-winning vitamin D book Defend Your Life, is dedicated to vitamin D awareness. Her extensive collection of health articles can be found on Hormone Matters as well as her blog at smilinsuepubs.com. Join Sue in her “Vitamin D Wellness” FB Group to learn more about vitamin D3, magnesium, and vitamin K2 supplementation. Follow her on Twitter @vitD3sue.

Hysterectomy and Brain Health

by Chandler Marrs, PhD

Published on March 5, 2013

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Studies abound showing how the endogenous estrogens, estradiol mainly, improve memory and other cognitive functions. New research demonstrates there is an even more basic connection between the female reproductive organs – the uterus and ovaries – and the brain. The monthly menstrual cycle may control iron levels in body and also in the brain. Women who have a hysterectomy before reaching natural menopause may be at higher risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as Azheimer’s and Parkinson’s due to the increased peripheral and brain iron levels post hysterectomy.

Iron and Brain Health

Iron is an essential element for health. Both iron deficiency and excess are associated with brain pathology. In the developing brain, too little iron causes neurological impairment with significant cognitive and neuromuscular deficits. As we age, iron accumulation in the brain is also problematic and linked to neurodegenertive disorders. In part because women menstruate, they have naturally lower levels of peripheral (body) iron than men. Researchers believe that the menstrual flushing of excess iron may be in part responsible for delaying the brain iron accumulation that has been linked to early Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s in men.

In a study published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging, researchers investigated what effect premenopausal hysterectomy had on brain iron levels. From a sample (n = 93) of healthy older, male and female volunteers, ages 47-80 years, researchers used a specialized MRI to image brain iron levels.

What they found was quite interesting. Women who had hysterectomy before reaching natural menopause had significantly higher iron levels in the white matter of the frontal cortex compared to women who reached menopause naturally. The hysterectomy group, also had higher iron levels in the other brain regions tested but those differences were not large enough to reach statistical significance. Brain iron levels in the hysterectomy group were similar to those of men, who have naturally higher iron levels in the brain and who often succumb to the neurodegenerative diseases at a much earlier age. The researchers speculated that the observed white matter iron accumulation could be a precusor to the grey matter iron accumulation observed in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Brain Basics

White matter in the brain consists of the oligodendrocytes – a type of cell that forms what is called the myelin sheath. Myelin is the insulation that protects the axons of the neuron (in the brain) or nerve (in the body) to allow rapid conduction or messaging across the brain or to the body. Myelin is like the plastic coating around the electrical wiring in your house. If the coating is too thick, conduction is blocked. If the coating is frayed or too thin, electrical sparks fly everywhere. Iron is a critical component of healthy myelin, too much or too little impairs signal conduction – brain messaging.

Grey matter, on the other hand, is where the unmyelinated portion of neurons – the dendrites and cell bodies – are located. These are brain regions responsible for learning, memory, emotion, sensory perception and motor control. Cells in this part of the brain rely on chemical signaling to translate information. After the dendrite receives and the cell body translates a message, it sends the signal down the myelinated axon to its target. Iron accumulation, either in the white or grey matter would impact brain function. Iron accumulation specifically in the frontal white matter region would impact all higher order cognitive function.

What This Means

The research is still in its early stages. An observed connection between menstrual blood loss and peripheral or brain iron stores though apparent, may not represent the total picture. It is quite likely that hormones associated with reproductive health, altered by the hysterectomy, also play a role in iron regulation. Initial research connecting the hyperandrogenic and metabolically dysregulated state of women with PCOS is associated with increased iron stores, as is general and cancer related inflammation, and genetics. Nevertheless, this study speaks to the critical need for more research about the long-term consequences of hysterectomy. Reproductive hormones regulate more than just reproduction. Removing the organs that synthesize these hormones has health consequences far beyond reproduction. It’s high time we begin addressing this.

If you have had a hysterectomy, be sure to take The Hysterectomy Survey.

Author’s note: I would like to thank David Wiseman Ph.D., M.R.Pharm.S.
Founder, International Adhesions Society (IAS) for introducing me to this exciting new research.