Preventing Alzheimer's Part 2

I found out the other day that Rita Hayworth died of Alzheimer’s disease. However, when her symptoms started to surface, many thought it was alcohol related. Apparently she did drink a lot, but mistaking one thing for another cost her valuable time. I will have to watch one of her films.

When I think back to a time when we could have actually prevented Grandma’s condition, it would have been too late. After my aunts and my mom noticed that Grandma wasn’t “quite all there,” many attempts were made to try and clear up the confusion with a multitude of medications, and I believe she was also on depression meds as well, however, in hindsight, masking the symptoms isn’t any type of prevention. I think the treatments of the symptoms worsened the confusion and the condition.

It’s important for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. If we delay too long, and attribute Alzheimer’s to some other condition, some of the early treatments won’t be possible. For those at risk, prevention NOW is the key, while we are in our twenties and thirties, not when we are in our fifties and beyond.

Instead of just paying attention to Grandma’s decline and trying to make her comfortable, I’ve been pursuing the latest research into causes and cures of Alzheimer’s. In a nutshell, plaque buildup in the brain caused by the beta amylase protein is what Scripps Florida scientist Dr. Malcom Leissring is targeting to find a cure. Another report linking diabetes to Alzheimer’s suggests that the Insulin Degrading Enzyme is associated with a higher risk to developing Alzheimer’s.

Someone wrote or said to me “the mystery of Alzheimer’s is frustrating,” and I guess my only solution to clearing up some of the mystery is to be informed and most of all just pay attention before it’s too late.

Leftovers

I brought a morsel of pecan pie (w/o nuts) and Grandma seemed to like that. I ran out of potatoes and didn't want to chance a piece of turkey getting caught in her throat, so pie was the only thing I had. Things went so fast on Thanksgiving Day that I didn't get a chance to set a piece of pumpkin aside.

Grandma was rather quiet yesterday - or contemplative - and was more interested in playing with her dining bib/towel than talking or looking at a magazine. Usually she likes to flip through the pictures and touch the pages. I'll read some things or try to before she licks her finger to turn the page. When she was on the farm she would read all of the magazines like Women's Day, Good Housekeeping and also the tabloids like National Enquirer and Star. I would enjoy reading those myself so now I have to resort to flipping through things at the grocery checkout line.

She still has some neck wounds as a result of her trying to take her top off and it getting caught around her neck because her arm was stuck in the hole. Her skin is so fragile that even the slightest nudge and she bruises. It's rare when I see her arms without some red/black/blue marks from her wheel chair escapades, and I put lotion on her forearms when I think of it because her skin is so dry, but it doesn't speed up the healing.

When the lunch cart came she was so hungry that she fed herself with a spoon. She didn't even mind when the nurse gave her a pill or her laxative liquid (she needs this everyday apparently) and ate most of her squash and meat puree. She still isn't very hot on the potato buds and I feel extra bad about not setting some real mashed potatoes aside.

While we were eating, Evelyn came over for a chat. She was in a pleasant mood and started talking about a "tragedy" of four girls running away and how "Jim" was involved with finding them. She's never mentioned Jim before and I asked her who he was and she retorted "Well you know Jim," and went on with how concerned the community was about these missing girls. She has a lot of interesting flashback stories and I wonder when some of them actually took place. I'll never know unless I am around when one of her family members is visiting, and I haven't seen anyone yet.

A Reason to Give Thanks

This is the first year that most of the McCann family won't be getting together for Thanksgiving. For 37 years of my life we have been trekking to an aunt or uncle's house the Saturday after Thanksgiving to get together and eat Turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, pies, corn casseroles, beans and cranberry sauce. The last few years have been at Hillcrest so we could be with Grandma. I'm going to go there on Friday to bring her some home cooked turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy and a little pie. I hope it will be a "good eating" day.

Mom says she's been off of her eating kick in the last week. It was too good to last, and I think all of her hunger came from having the flu a couple of weeks ago. I'm thankful she made it through that. As weak as the disease has made her, she's still a tough cookie.

Last year I was thinking at this time, "Is this the last year with Grandma?" I've decided to stop thinking that, because it really doesn't matter. She's not worried about it, why should I be? She enjoys being around the people she loves, and she knows that she is loved in return. We can guess at the reasons she's staying around for, but better yet we can be thankful that she's here, and beyond that, nothing else matters.

Brain Power Diet

I'm reading more about how diet effects the onset of Alzheimer's, and I have to say that Grandma and Grandpa's diet on the farm didn't help Grandma escape the disease any more that if it chased her down and tackled her like a Chicago Bears linebacker (GO BEARS!).

There was always good 'farm food' growing up and if there wasn't meat and potatoes on the table, it wasn't a meal. AND don't forget the gravy. Genetically, Grandpa was from Irish background and Grandma was from German heritage, so that will tell you right there they were hearty eaters.

Maybe that's why I like beer so much.

Here are Grandma's most favorite foods when she could eat solid food: hamburgers, french fries, barbecue and fried chicken. She wasn't much of a milk drinker, but she did like tea, and so did Grandpa.

I enjoy following USA Weekend's weekly Eat Smart tips by Jean Carper. Here are 5 brain food tips (for baby boomers she says but I'm not waiting until I'm 55 before I start paying attention to my diet) she suggests that will help reduce the risk of Alzheimer's and preserve brain power as we age:

• Eat fish. Studies have show that the omega-3 fat in fish such as tuna or salmon may help fight toxic plaque and stimulate communication between the brain cells.
• Get plenty of fruits and vegetables into your system. A daily serving of strawberries, blueberries or spinach helped to prevent AND in some cases reverse brain aging in animals.
• Drink Green Tea. Two cups of the antioxidant-rich drink a day can cut the risk of cognitive impairment by 54%.
• Eat Curry. This could be called the spice of life! One of the ingredients in curry, curcumin, is shown to improve memory in animals and reduce a brain toxin that's linked to Alzheimer's.
• Trim Animal Fat and Calories. A new Swedish study indicates that people who ate more saturated animal fat in midlife doubled their Alzheimer's risk, especially those who are genetically vulnerable.

I'm going to start looking for cookbooks that focus on diets for those who are wanting to prevent Alzheimer's Disease.

Death and Dying

It seems like I pay more attention to death and dying when it is so close as it is now. I'm not throwing out anything prophetic about Grandma: she's doing great and she had a great day on Sunday when I last saw her, but I know that we are losing her on a daily basis, little by little.

Also, one of the residents at Hillcrest, Duane, died last Saturday, partly due to the flu that eventually set in to pneumonia. He couldn't shake it off, and went downhill fast. That could of happened to Grandma and I half prepared myself for it, but she's tough and feisty as I have mentioned before, and she came through it fine. I even got an "I love you" before I left. That's something she hasn't said in awhile, and I wonder if I'll hear it again.

We lost her long ago, and it has been a grueling process. Some of the mechanics still exist, her brain likes to sing songs, hold hands and look through the newspaper, although it doesn't know why. I like to think she's in there, just for my own comfort.