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Read Like a “Nutrition Expert”
When it comes to nutrition and Alzheimer’s
disease, it’s not hard to find information
from newspapers, magazines, TV and the
internet. Stories are everywhere. No, it’s not hard finding
the articles. The hard part is trying to figure out if the
information makes any sense.
A recent article on selenium and Alzheimer’s disease
showed that people with low selenium levels did not
perform as well on a cognitive test as people with higher
levels of selenium. Does this mean selenium can improve
a person’s ability to think and reason? Should people with
Alzheimer’s take a selenium supplement? Here are five
questions you can ask to help you separate the good stories
from the bad – and the maybes.
Question No. 1: Who are the subjects of the study?
Are they similar to me?
Studies done with animals or in a laboratory are the least
reliable. The results just may not be true in humans or in
real life. In the study mentioned above, the subjects were
people 65 years and older and lived in a rural community
in China. What is your ethnicity? Do you live in a rural,
suburban or urban area? What country do you live in?
How old are you? Other important questions are: Were
these men or women? Did they have any other serious
medical problems? Were the ages distributed evenly or
were they skewed to the lower or upper end of the age
range? An older age group would likely not perform as
well on a cognitive test.
Question No. 2: What was the goal of the study?
How does it apply to me?
The researchers wanted to see if people with low
selenium levels had a lower ability to perform cognitively.
Notice that the study didn’t answer the question of
whether low selenium caused the cognitive decline. Maybe
there is something else in foods that made the difference.
Or maybe people who eat foods high in selenium have a
different lifestyle that caused the difference.
Question No. 3: Were the nutrients obtained from
food or supplements?
This article on selenium did not specify. Food sources
are complex and include many vitamins, minerals and
other nutrients. Selenium may be powerful when in this
“food environment.” As a single supplement, it may not
be as effective. Keep this in mind before adding a selenium
supplement to your regimen.
Question No. 4: Does the study look valid?
This is a tricky question, but using common sense,
you can come to some conclusions. For example, a test
performed with 20 people is not going to be as convincing
as one that had 2,000, as this selenium study did. Another
important point is how the study was conducted. In the
selenium example, the people had blood work done to
test their selenium and then were given a test for their
cognitive functioning. Both seem reasonable. But other
studies may not have such hard-and-fast measures. Studies
that conduct diet recalls of what someone ate in the past
are not as reliable. You might also consider the results of
the study and whether they were significant or not. In
other words, maybe the people with low selenium scored
lower on the tests, but not enough to make a difference
in their lives.
Question No. 5: How do the conclusions of the study
stack up against similar studies?
One scientific study does not provide all the answers.
It is helpful to keep notes on what you read and then
compare. Over time, you will see if a trend is developing
and which way it is going.
Conclusion: Reader beware! Information you read
in the general press might be overstated and not describe
the nuances of clinical trials or observational studies. The
press tends to simplify and exaggerate the findings of studies
to make good headlines. And your mother’s warning, “If
it’s too good to be true, then it is probably so,” holds true
here as well. Do your homework, learn how to read the
results of a study and call the Alzheimer’s Association if you
have any questions about claims for a food or supplement
preventing, treating or curing Alzheimer’s disease or other
dementias.
This is the 13th in a series of articles on the nutritional and feeding needs of persons with AD.
GLWD is a non-profit agency in NYC that provides meals to men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS, cancer, AD and many other serious
illnesses who are unable to shop or prepare meals for themselves. Experienced nutritionists provide nutrition education, information and counseling in
individual and group sessions to clients, their caregivers and other service providers. In partnership with GLWD, the NYC Chapter is pleased to offer this
service to people with dementia and their families. For more information, please call our 24-hour Helpline at 800-272-3900. For individualized nutrition
information, GLWD’s nutrition department can be reached at 212-294-8103, 1-800-747-2023 or www.glwd.org.
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