I will show some studies on the herb sage as a useful way to increase mental function because it can’t hurt for people to know it could help dementia patients.
Sage has some estrogens so younger women should avoid it but older people should have no problem drinking sage tea to improve memory, it was mentioned as memory herb by Nicolas Culpeper in the 1600’s.
A couple of teaspoons a day seems safe, I discovered sage was useful for asthma and my skin problems 20 years ago.
‘The results of this study indicate the efficacy of Salvia officinalis (Sage) extract in the management of mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. ‘
Salvia officinalis extract in the treatment of patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease: a double blind, randomized and placebo-controlled trial
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12605619/
Salvia (Sage): A Review of its Potential Cognitive-Enhancing and Protective Effects
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5318325/
Berries and other antioxidants can help, ‘Mediterranean diet’ foods as a guide.
One reason is that foods with polyphenols such as berries increase Paraoxonase activity which then reduces oxidised cholesterol.
Cholesterol itself is good for nerves and wound repair but oxidised cholesterol causes health problems due to immune activation.
Other antioxidants also prevent cholesterol in the brain from oxidising which then reduces the risk of microglia trying to respond to the oxidised cholesterol and causing inflammation damage to brain cells. This is also of importance in the arteries where white blood cells respond to oxidised cholesterol in the arterial wall and in the process of trying to remove it cause inflammation and become dysfunctional macrophages or foam cells engorged with bad fats that cripple their repair function.
When I think of white blood cells being unable to remove cholesterol I imagine a full vacuum cleaner (:
‘Paraoxonase activity was decreased in Alzheimer disease and in mixed dementia as compared with control group. In the same forms of dementia homocysteine levels were increased. In Alzheimer disease paraoxonase activity was negatively correlated with homocysteine levels.’
I compiled a list of these types of foods in the blog here to add some specific foods to that advice.
‘The types of food that raise paraoxonase enzymes are featured in the Mediterranean diet and this can partly explain why the Mediterranean diet is so beneficial for heart disease.
Foods that can be used on a daily basis would include pomegranate juice, possibly the most potent of the foods, ‘Vitamin C and vitamin E, quercetin, red wine polyphenols, green tea extracts, grape seed extracts, freeze-dried blueberries, gallic acid and ellagic acid from berries, taurine foods, acai berries, olive oil and moderate alcohol consumption….’
Paraoxonase Enzymes, Pesticides, Cholesterol and the Mediterranean Diet
Another factor is having high iron levels which cause damage due to iron’s oxidising effects.
‘High iron levels appear to push the progress of the disease, accelerating cognitive decline. People with a build-up of both amyloid and iron are highly likely to develop dementia.’
High iron levels accelerate Alzheimer’s disease progress
https://florey.edu.au/about/news-media/high-iron-levels-accelerate-alzheimers-disease-progress
One of my first thoughts to fix high iron is to raise vitamin B6 levels, it seems best in the morning at 100mg to 200mg doses as night-time use seems to worsen sleep but that is my experience.
As B6 raises serotonin dosage should be timed according to your own experience, it may affect people in different ways and people on SSRI’s need to try B6 in lower doses in case serotonin rises too quickly.
B6 can also make you sleepy if taken in the day as the rise in serotonin likely creates a melatonin effect as well, so people know.
B6 also seems to prevent siderosis or iron build up in the body while allowing iron to be used to create blood cells.
Iron deposits in organs can be inflammatory and unused iron can also be a major cause of infections and we need to get blood into our red blood cells before bacteria or fungi use the iron as food, unused iron also affects cancer growth. B6 also lowers blood homocysteine levels.
‘Homocysteine is a risk factor for cerebrovascular disease and may also have directly toxic effects on neurons of the central nervous system. Neuropsychiatric disorders including seizures, migraine, chronic pain and depression have been linked to vitamin B6 deficiency. Epidemiological studies indicate that poor vitamin B6 status is common among older people. Hyperhomocysteinaemia has been suggested as a cause or mechanism in the development Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Supplementation with B vitamins including vitamin B6 has been shown to reduce blood homocysteine levels.’
The effect of vitamin B6 on cognition
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14584010/
The other vitamins to mention are folic acid and B12, anyone who eats fresh veggies should have OK folate levels, while meat eaters should have enough vitamin B12, if on a vegetarian diet a B12 supplement is probably needed and people getting dementia may do well taking B12 regardless.
I always think supplemental folate can be dangerous for cancer risk as it encourages cell growth so fresh vegetables may be the safest and best source of folate.
Folate, B12 and B6 are the basic vitamins for good red blood cell production with enough vitamin C.
‘Homocysteine is a homologue of the amino acid cysteine. High levels of homocysteine are common in people over 65 and have been linked to a wide variety of age-related problems including dementia. Several B vitamins, including vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), B9 (folic acid), and B12 (cobalamin), can reduce homocysteine levels. However, clinical trials testing the effects of homocysteine-lowering B vitamin supplementation for as long as seven years have generally shown a lack of benefit in cognitive functions, though there is some evidence to suggest that people with particularly high homocysteine levels may benefit. Vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to serious health problems including dementia if not treated.’
Vitamin B6, B12 & Folic Acid (B9)
https://www.alzdiscovery.org/uploads/cognitive_vitality_media/addf-vitamin-b-full-report.pdf
Hope this adds some possible useful concepts on the problem.
