Inhalational Alzheimer's
July 30, 2018Inhalational Alzheimer’s
References: Bredesen Aging,
Inhalational means caused by breathing. How awful and how insidious! But that's exactly what this article is about. The primary cause is mold biotoxins, though other toxins will carry out the same effect. Indoor pollution is worse than outdoor pollution and our homes are so airtight now, we often have levels of toxin in the air that far exceeds the level of mold toxins outdoors. The whole biotoxin pathway gets activated and sets in motion the illness now called CIRS (chronic inflammatory response syndrome).
Now, only 25% of us have immune systems that are vulnerable to this risk (generally), and 2% of us are exquisitely sensitive. That can be determined by assessing your HLA genetic haplotype. The diagnosis of Alzheimer's to date has been a death sentence. As we age, more of us get it and for those of us who make it to 85, we have roughly a 50% chance of being a victim. Inhalational Alzheimer's fits into Bredesen's Type III Alzheimer's that usually presents without family history, without obvious memory loss as its cardinal feature, but more likely with trouble word finding, calculating or executive functions after a period of intense stress, such as andropause, menopause, anesthesia for surgery or other major stresses and is so often accompanied by depression that it is not easily recognized for its cause. It is not uncommon to find abnormal zinc and copper ratios and low pregnenolone, cortisol and DHEA-s with it and imaging of the brain shows damage to other parts of the brain than just the hippocampus.
In this article, Bredesen gives a nod to Shoemaker's protocol and relates the case histories of patients affected by this pattern of illness. What is most enthralling is that the folks get better! Better! Yes. Slowly. There is brain damage. It takes time and most of all takes being removed from the environment that got them in trouble in the first place with the inhaled mold spores. But it makes addressing and treating CIRS a critical element of any effort to reverse Alzheimer's.
WWW.What will work for me. Well, I just bought a very expensive meter that can measure the number of particles in the air in my home and office. I've been running back and forth to see if its reliable. My home has 200-300,000 particles per cubic foot. My basement hits 450,000. I'm told some juicy basements will reach 4-5 million. When I hold the meter over my cool HEPA filter, it only reads 20,000. Every time I take a breath, I breathe in half those numbers, as I inhale in the range of half a cubic foot of air with a good breath. So, I called a HVAC guy to put in an industrial strength dehumidifier and bring in outside air for our AC and furnace. He said I should think about UV light air treatment too as that kills off all sorts of stuff too. Stay tuned.
Pop Quiz
- Indoor air is dirtier than outdoor air? T or F Answer: Sad, but true
- The most common biotoxin that damages humans is? Answer: Various species of mold, not determined yet which is the primary culprit.
- How many of us are at risk? Answer: 25 % are genetically vulnerable, 2% exquisitely so. But enough exposure can get almost anyone sick. The fact that it's not an obvious majority has allowed this condition to slip below the radar.
- Inhalational Alzheimer's defines what? Answer: Those people in Bredesen's TYPE III Alzheimer's called Cortical or Toxic that doesn't have memory loss as its primary symptom.
- Every time you breathe, how many particles do you breathe in that could include mold biotoxins? Answer: You don't know until you measure but a clean home will typically have 150,000 particles per cubic foot, and you breathe in a quarter to a half of that. That's the fine dust we call dust bunnies under your bed or dresser, or on your computer screen. You can measure your own home's safety by ordering an ERMI (Environmental Relative Mold Index) test from www.mycometrics.com. A score over 2 means your home is a problem.