Alzheimer’s is caused by the formation of destructive plaques in the brain you may have heard of called beta-amyloid.
But did you know there’s a natural, vitamin-like nutrient that can stop your brain from forming these plaques?
It’s called pyrroloquinoline-quinone, or PQQ.
When you take PQQ, it protects the proteins in your brain and reduces the formation of the plaques that lead to Alzheimer’s. PQQ also protects the brain from the toxic effects of any plaque that may already be there.1
Incredible. And yet this has never been reported anywhere in the media. Go to Google News and type in pyrroloquinoline-quinone and the word Alzheimer’s. You’ll get no results.
In fact, until recently, a molecule that can protect your brain like this had never even been talked about by scientists in any publication anywhere.2
Fortunately, some hard-working and conscientious researchers HAVE been looking into PQQ’s brain-protective qualities.
Here’s what I’ve uncovered:
- PQQ reverses amyloid plaque toxicity and damage: In one of the first studies to look at PQQ, researchers found that when they pre-treated brain cells with PQQ they were protected from damage by amyloid plaque. In fact, brain cells “recovered” from death induced by the plaque, PQQ prevented healthy brain cells from dying, and made weakened and dying brain cells give off “healthy” signals again.3
- PQQ protects against brain injury and improves memory: After suffering a brain injury, a group of animals were trained for five days to do a maze test. The animals given PQQ easily completed the maze, but none of the animals without PQQ could complete the maze. And the more PQQ the animals got, the faster they could do the maze.4
- PQQ shields brain cells from toxicity: In another animal study, two groups of rats got a toxic level of glutamate (yes, the same stuff that’s in artificial sweeteners) in their brain. One group also got PQQ. The PQQ protected the animals’ brain cells from injury. It also acted as a powerful antioxidant, squelching free radicals so they didn’t cause damage.5
Here’s something else the health establishment won’t be able to tell you (because they don’t know what PQQ is): Many foods have PQQ in them, including various vegetables, fruits, milk, and animal products.
Foods with the most PQQ are the fermented soy product natto, eggs, parsley, kiwi fruit, green peppers, and tofu. Green tea and oolong tea also have PQQ, and even wine and whiskey have a bit in them.6
One of the reasons I say PQQ is vitamin-like is that our bodies can’t make it, yet we need it. Animals with PQQ taken out of their diet grow poorly.
Like vitamin C or omega-3, nutrients we can’t make but that we need in order to live are usually classified as essential, and sometimes as vitamins.
Fortunately, even if you can’t eat enough PQQ-rich foods, you can take PQQ as a supplement.
But I have to warn you: the amount used in scientific studies is equivalent to a human dose of 10mg, yet most supplements only use a 5mg dose. The reason is that PQQ is expensive, and many supplement makers want to get away with giving you either lower quality or a lower dose.
1. Kim J, Harada R, Kobayashi M, Kobayashi N, Sode K. “The inhibitory effect of pyrroloquinoline quinone on the amyloid formation and cytotoxicity of truncated alpha-synuclein.” Mol Neurodegener. 2010;5:20.
2. Kim J, Harada R, Kobayashi M, Kobayashi N, Sode K. “The inhibitory effect of pyrroloquinoline quinone on the amyloid formation and cytotoxicity of truncated alpha-synuclein.” Mol Neurodegener. 2010;5:20.
3. Zhang J, Zhang R, Meng X. “Protective effect of pyrroloquinoline quinone against Abeta-induced neurotoxicity in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells.” Neurosci Lett. 2009;464(3):165-9.
4. Zhang L, Liu J, Cheng C, Yuan Y, Yu B, Shen A, Yan M. “The neuroprotective effect of pyrroloquinoline quinone on traumatic brain injury.” J Neurotrauma. 2012;29(5):851-64.
5. Zhang Q, Ding M, Cao Z, Zhang J, Ding F, Ke K. “Pyrroloquinoline quinine protects rat brain cortex against acute glutamate-induced neurotoxicity.” Neurochem Res. 2013 Aug;38(8):1661-71.
6. Kumazawa T, Sato K, Seno H, Ishii A, Suzuki O. “Levels of pyrroloquinoline quinone in various foods.” Biochem J. 1995; 307(Pt 2): 331–333.