Over 700,000 people in America are hospitalized each year due to falls. Most of these people are elderly. There is a simple option that almost everyone reading this article has never heard of – until now.
Recent studies have found that blueberries eaten daily for a minimum of six weeks have a measurable improvement in our walking gait. Gait is used as a measurement of walking. It is an excellent predictor of the risk of falling.
Older citizens are often caught in a Catch 22 of prescription medicines. They take one prescription medicine for hypertension (high blood pressure) and another for osteoporosis, and another for cholesterol. After a while, side effects become bad enough that pills are prescribed to counter those side effects.
Aging continues and arthritis and cardiovascular disease might come into their lives. More pills. More side effects. And, more pills. My parents were on over a dozen prescriptions each in their 80’s. Several were for side effects only.
Another recent study using mice revealed the impact of blueberry extract on cholesterol. LDL (bad cholesterol) was lowered by 34% after six weeks and total cholesterol by 28%. HDL (good cholesterol) increased by 40%.
Homocysteine levels rise in the presence of cardiovascular disease. If you are not getting a homocysteine level check with each physical, ask your doctor why. The blueberry extract showed a 50% reduction in homocysteine levels and triglycerides in the same cholesterol study.
The risk of Alzheimer’s disease increases with age. There have been many studies about what is effective to treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease. In a controlled study, blueberry extract combined with omega-3 fatty acid and phosphatidylserine (PS for short) were given to select groups of volunteers.
Acetylcholine levels in the group with all three combined showed the highest increase in acetylcholine. Acetylcholine assists with the communication transmission between neurons. People with low levels of acetylcholine often have Alzheimer’s disease.
My brother-in-law has Alzheimer’s disease. Prior to going on PS daily for three months, he could not tell you what year it was. After three months supplementing with PS, he could tell you what he had for breakfast, what was on television last night and what’s on television tonight. It is most effective at the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
PS is one of four phospholipids your body makes every day. The aging process slows down our body’s production. PS can cross the blood brain barrier and greatly improve brain health and cognitive memory as you age.