New diet helps woman’s dementia battle
AWOMAN living with dementia has seen a remarkable improvement in her condition after radically changing her diet.
Sylvia Hatzer’s Alzeimer’s had become so bad she had to be kept in hospital for her own safety. But along with her son Mark, they have devised a diet high in blueberries and walnuts which has had such a dramatic impact on Sylvia’s condition that their recipes are being shared by the Alzheimer’s Society.
Mark had first noticed his mum’s forgetfulness three years ago.
She would struggle to remember birthdays or arrangements she had made with friends and after this became increasingly frequent, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in December 2016.
The deterioration was fairly rapid and Sylvia, 82, was taken to North Manchester General Hospital.
Here Mark, 50, ‘reached the lowest point of his life’ when his mum did not recognise him.
Medics asked if Sylvia could be sectioned, as she had accused staff of kidnapping her.
One year later and Sylvia, a former telephonist, is still at home and unrecognisable from this low point.
She is held up by charity the Alzheimer’s Society as an example of how the disease can be - if not be completely beaten - arrested significantly.
She can remember birthdays once more, goes to tea dances and can carry out much of her own care needs.
Mark and his mum decided that medication was not in itself enough, so taking heed of the fact that rates of dementia are far lower in Mediterranean countries - copied their eating habits.
Mark said: “When she left hospital I thought instead of prescribed medication we thought we’d perhaps try alternative treatment. In certain countries, Alzheimer’s is virtually unheard of because of their diet.
“Everyone knows about fish but there is also blueberries, strawberries, Brazil nuts and walnuts - these are apparently shaped like a brain to give us a sign that they are good for the brain.”
Other foods Sylvia began incorporating include broccoli, kale and spinach, sunflower seeds, green tea, oats, sweet potatoes and as a treat, dark chocolate with a high cocoa content.
But there were other steps mum and son made together, such as cognitive exercises including jigsaws and crosswords, meeting people at social groups and a little exercise.
Mark, a lawyer, said: “It wasn’t an overnight miracle but after a couple of months she began remembering things like birthdays and was becoming her old self again, more alert, more engaged.”
Sue Clarke, from the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “It’s fantastic that Sylvia, along with her son Mark, have taken action to create a personal plan that works well for her dementia diagnosis.
“There is currently no cure or way of preventing the progression of the condition, but taking regular gentle exercise, eating a healthy diet and doing cognitive exercises can help someone with dementia manage their condition more effectively.”