Alzheimer's research wastes billions?

Alzheimer's research: billions wasted?

(21.06.2010) According to a report by the magazine "Technology Review", there are scientific doubts about the common theories of Alzheimer's research, for which about 50 billion are spent each year. New therapeutic and prevention options could come from the field of naturopathy.

The magazine "Technology Review", which is published by Heise Verlag in Hanover, published an article in its May issue on the theory of the US brain researcher George Bartzokis. Bartzokis works as a psychiatrist at the University of California Brain Research Institute (UCLA). Since 2003, Bartzoki's MRI has produced and evaluated images of patients' brains. He had already published some of them in specialist magazines, and then came to the public in 2009 with his own theory.

According to Bartzokis, it is not the deposits of proteins in the brains of the affected persons that is the problem, but a deficient function of the sheaths of the nerves, the so-called myelin sheaths. The myelin sheath is said to be less and less intact and dysfunctional by the human organism in old age. In order to keep the myelin sheath intact, the organism needs cholesterol, which in the public and often from a medical point of view is usually associated with a negative image.

Bartzoki's theses are supported by the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Because those affected would not forget individual terms, which would rather speak for the deposition thesis by a loss of function of individual areas, but first of all, there would be a lack of establishing links with Alzheimer's sufferers. This would rather speak for the fact that the pathways linking individual areas are affected.

Previous research and therapy approaches rely on deposits in the brain of those affected. Therefore, Bartzoki's approach could open up a whole new dimension in the direction of research and future treatment approaches in Alzheimer's disease. And they could look quite simple and come from the field of naturopathy, such as eating fish oil and doing sports as a kind of myelin sheath wellness program becomes. (Thorsten Fischer, Naturopath Osteopathy)