New research has revealed that the secret to defeating Alzheimer’s doesn’t come from Big Pharma’s drugs.
Instead, it resides deep inside your own body.
This will come as a shock to Big Pharma. After all, they’ve been lining their pockets for years pushing drugs that don’t work.1
In fact, tens of billions of dollars, including more than $3.7 billion last year alone, have been poured into Alzheimer’s research over the past decade – and it has all been pointless.
Government agencies, tax-payer cash, and countless well-meaning charities have helped fund everything from unfounded genetic theories to all sorts of trial drugs, vaccines, cholinesterase inhibitors, and monoclonal antibodies.
None of them have brought us one step closer to finding a cure or stopping the unprecedented global explosion of this epidemic.
But now, a team of Israeli scientists have made an astonishing breakthrough discovery.
Researchers at Ben-Gurion University have confirmed that the root of Alzheimer’s lies in your mitochondria, the tiny energy powerhouses found in each one of your cells.2
Piggybacking on the growing body of evidence that has linked mitochondrial dysfunction to Alzheimer’s, the Israeli researchers used mouse models to target a mitochondrial gatekeeper – a protein called VDAC1 – which controls how these little power packs function, as well as the life and death of the cell itself.
The scientists found that lab mice that produced excess VDAC1 in their brain cells suffered mitochondrial and cell death, triggering an autoimmune response leading to neuroinflammation.
This, in turn, led to the release of neurotoxins that resulted in the amyloid plagues and nerve tangles characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease.
But by targeting VDAC1 with a special molecule that binds to the protein, the researchers prevented the changes that led to mitochondrial dysfunction and Alzheimer’s.
This is great news because it means you now have the knowledge and ability to prevent this dreadful disease from ever striking.
And it helps explain my many successes in treating Alzheimer’s patients at the Sears Institute for Anti-Aging Medicine. I’ve been recommending natural therapies that target the mitochondria for years.
Meanwhile, Big Pharma has been caught flat-footed. Despite the recommendations of the Israeli scientists, there are no current Alzheimer’s drug candidates that target mitochondria.
But the good news is you don’t need Big Pharma or their expensive drugs to beat Alzheimer’s.
Tap Into The Alzheimer’s Treatment Hiding Inside You
Here are three powerful nutrients I recommend to my patients for keeping their mitochondria firing on all cylinders. The sooner you start taking them, the better.
- Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALC): This amino acid plays a crucial role in making energy in your cells. It transports fatty acids into your mitochondria, where they are burned for fuel. It also carries toxic waste out before it can do any damage. But, as you age, your carnitine levels drop. That’s why you need ALC. Your body converts L-carnitine to ALC. Studies show that when your mitochondria slow down, ALC can fire them up again. Studies also show that ALC reverses the malfunction in mitochondria as you age.3,4
The best source of L-carnitine is grass-fed red meat. But you can also supplement. I suggest taking at least 500 mg of ALC every day on an empty stomach. Look for a formula with only L-carnitine and not D, L-carnitine. D-carnitine is synthetic. - N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC): This is another amino acid that’s also a powerful antioxidant. NAC helps make glutathione, the body’s most powerful antioxidant. Glutathione is the main line of defense for mitochondria. It helps prevent and repair oxidative damage, thus protecting your mitochondria.5,6
Studies show that it also protects your telomeres from oxidative damage.7 So it throws a one-two anti-aging punch. I advise supplementing with 500 mg per day. - Rhodiola Rosea: This tough little yellow flower is native to the arctic mountains of Eastern Siberia, and it’s a great herb for enhancing mitochondrial energy production. I’ve seen the power it has to energize my patients. In just a few months, they are visibly younger and stronger. And they tell me they feel that way, too.
You can find rhodiola tea in health food stores. Or you can take it in capsule form. It’s also called golden root or roseroot. But make sure you get a formula with enough of the herb’s active compounds. Look for an extract standardized to contain at least 3% rosavins and 1% salidroside. That’s the same ratio found in the natural root. I recommend taking 250 mg daily on an empty stomach, preferably in the morning, because rhodiola stimulates your brain.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD, CNS
References:
1. Drake, J. “Dementia drugs may put some patients at risk, Queen’s study shows,” EurekAlert (www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/490531), 5/27/09E
2. Shoshan-Barmatz V, Nahon-Crystal E, Shteinfer-Kuzmine A, Gupta R. VDAC1, mitochondrial dysfunction, and Alzheimer’s disease. Pharmacol Res. 2018;131:87-101.S
3. Opalka, J, et al. “Age and sex dependency of carnitine concentrations in human serum and skeletal muscle.” Clinical Chemistry, 2001; 47: 12: 2150-2153.
4. Kidd PM. “Neurodegeneration from mitochondrial insufficiency: nutrients, stem cells, growth factors, and prospects for brain rebuilding using integrative management.” Altern Med Rev. 2005; 10(4):268-93
5. Montserrat Marí, Albert Morales, Anna Colell et al. “Mitochondrial Glutathione, a Key Survival Antioxidant.” Antioxid Redox Signal. 2009; 11(11): 2685–2700
6. 5. Kelly GS. “Clinical applications of N-acetylcysteine.” Altern Med Rev. 1998;3(2):114-27.
7. Ludlow A, et al. “Telomeres Shorten in Response to Oxidative Stress in Mouse Skeletal Muscle Fibers.” J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2014;69(7):821-30.