My Mother’s Alzheimer’s, Jack LaLanne and Sugar.

 

One of my heroes was Jack LaLanne. I hate to date myself but when I was a kid I remembered watching Jack on TV. I wasn’t really sure what I was actually watching but somehow he was mesmerizing to the little kid in me. They were re-runs I’m not THAT old!  😉

I guess I’ll never know but maybe I saw this episode on sugar and it set me on my life’s path?

In it, he calls the entire country “Sugarholics” over 50 years ago!

This, of all his quotes, may be my favorite:

“I know so many people in their 80s who have

Alzheimer’s or are in a wheelchair or whatever.

And I say to myself ‘I don’t want to live like that.

I don’t want to be a burden on my family. I need

to live life. And I’d hate dying; it would ruin my

image.‘”

“I’d hate dying; it would ruin my image.” Classic

Jack – his best quote ever!

So my dear, sainted mother has Alzheimer’s.

It’s hard. It’s sad and I honestly believe, deep in my soul, that it was preventable.

You see my beloved mother was/is a sugar junkie. Now, as her mind fades, she would eat sugar all day if you let her. And even before, as the disease was just getting started, if you didn’t watch her food intake she would just eat sugar.

As gentle as she was all her life she would also get very angry if you denied her sugar. It’s just heartbreaking to watch.

Many, many studies have begun to link diseases of the brain to sugar and grain. In his great book “Grain Brain” Dr. Perlmutter lays it all out. There are many other books and studies out there too.

I’ve studied health and wellness my entire adult life. I’ve used my body as a human guinea pig to find out the optimal strategies. I’ve read constantly, exercised and attended endless seminars to keep my body in shape.

But what about my mind? Just in the past few years BOTH my parents have manifested Alzheimer’s in their lives. While my father is the early stages – it is definitely dementia.

So it appeared that my “health” strategy had to change. I watched what bad food did to my parents bodies. The list would blow your mind.

But in the end, it was their minds that suffered most.

We have a saying here:

“Come for the Vanity – Stay for the Sanity”

It simply means – most folks come for weight loss and to look better – but in reality healing your mind fixes both issues. The peace of mind, ease and lack of anxiety that comes with sugar freedom is very hard to articulate to someone who has never experienced it. That control and peace is then quickly translated into a healthy body too.

We’ve written a lot about dopamine and the body’s feel goods. If you extend into the future the beating the poor brain takes – it’s easy to see how these brain dis-ease’s manifest.

I do NOT want my kids to go through this Alzheimer’s thing. I get worried today when I walk into a room and forget why I came in there.

Don’t believe “it’s in the genes” and that you have to accept some random lottery of inheritance. I’ve seen other members of my family live to be old and healthy and their diets were very different than my parents (read much better).

The decision is ultimately yours.

The saddest and hardest part of all of sugar’s damage – is that it takes decades to manifest.

You could be perfectly healthy in your 70’s (my parents were) and then BOOM. President Reagan was hidden from the public for an entire decade. Anybody remember his love of jelly beans? Just sayin’.

You have to ask yourselves..

Are you willing to continue to roll the dice

Sure, the evidence is not 100% conclusive yet but the needle is tilting heavily in the wrong direction already.

If you’re ready to change please join us.

We’re here to help any way we can.

Just one of thousands of posts in our sugar-free, super private forums: “ I’m so glad all of you understand me. I’m only 21 days sugar-free (I’m in the infant stage) and I’ve got lots of obstacles to overcome. I’ve tried many many times to go sugar-free …. thank you for being here, sweet people!”

You in? Click here.