Memory Loss Prevention and Treatment

The Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman have sued dietary supplement maker Quincy Bioscience, LLC, charging that it deceptively markets the widely-sold supplement Prevagen by falsely claiming that it improves memory, despite lacking reliable scientific evidence.

“The marketing for Prevagen is a clear-cut fraud, from the label on the bottle to the ads airing across the country,” said Schneiderman. “It’s particularly unacceptable that this company has targeted vulnerable citizens like seniors in its advertising for a product that costs more than a week’s groceries, but provides none of the health benefits that it claims. Quincy Bioscience must be held accountable for deliberately misleading consumers across the country.”

Quincy Bioscience said it "vehemently disagrees" with the allegations and said the case was "another example of government overreach and regulators extinguishing innovation by imposing arbitrary new rules on small businesses like ours."

“Prevagen is safe. Neither the FTC nor the New York Attorney General has alleged that Prevagen can cause or has caused harm to anyone. And hundreds of thousands people tell us it works and improves their lives," the company's statement said. 

Prevagen, which can cost up to $69 per bottle, is sold at major retailers and pharmacies across the country, including CVS, Walgreens, Rite-Aid, the Vitamin Shoppe, and Amazon. Sales of Prevagen in the United States from 2007 through mid-2015, minus refunds, totaled $165 million.

"Clearer thinking"

In its advertising and product labeling, Quincy Bioscience claims that Prevagen is “clinically shown” to support “clearer thinking” and to “improve memory within 90 days” – yet, the primary support Quincy Bioscience has for these claims is a single study that failed to show a statistically significant improvement in the treatment group over the placebo group on any of the cognitive measures used, Schneiderman said.

Quincy Bioscience developed and marketed Prevagen on the theory that its active ingredient, apoaequorin, a dietary protein, enters the human brain to supplement proteins that are lost during the natural aging process. Yet the suit charges that Quincy Bioscience lacks any studies showing that this orally-administered protein can cross the human blood brain barrier, and in fact, Quincy’s own studies show that the protein is rapidly digested in the stomach and broken down into amino acids like any other dietary protein.

“The marketers of Prevagen preyed on the fears of older consumers experiencing age-related memory loss,” said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Yet despite the defendants’ claims, there is no scientific proof that use of the product will improve memory or provide any other cognitive benefit.”

In its statement, which was not attributed to any specific individual, Quincy insisted its product works as claimed.

“Quincy has amassed a large body of evidence that Prevagen improves memory and supports healthy brain function. This evidence includes preclinical rat studies, canine studies, human clinical studies, and, most importantly, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled human clinical testing. This type of testing has long been acknowledged by both the FTC and the FDA to be the ‘gold standard’ for scientific evidence.

The lawsit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and seeks a ban on further false claims about Prevagen, restitution for consumers, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, and civil penalties for violations of state law. 

In case you haven't noticed, nearly everyone is going to a yoga class. The breathing, stretching and relaxation regimen has always been popular among “New Age” adherents, but lately has gone mainstream in a big way.

A 2012 study by Yoga Journal counted 20.4 million Americans among those practicing yoga, compared to 15.8 million in the 2008 study. Demographically, yoga practitioners tend to be young and female, but that may be changing.

Physicians in recent years have begun recommending yoga for male and female patients of all ages. The Mayo Clinic says it can not only reduce stress, but lower blood pressure and improve heart function.

“Hatha yoga, in particular, may be a good choice for stress management,” Mayo Clinic physicians advise on the Clinic's website. “Hatha is one of the most common styles of yoga, and beginners may like its slower pace and easier movements.”

Yoga for seniors

Hatha yoga may, in fact, be a good choice for older adults. Researchers at the University of Illinois found practicing hatha yoga 3 times a week for as few as 8 weeks helped older, sedentary adults think more clearly.

The researchers tested two groups of seniors – one which engaged in hatha yoga classes and one which took part in simple stretching exercises.

After 8 weeks the yoga group was noticeably faster and more accurate on tests of information recall, mental flexibility and task-switching than it had been before the classes. The stretching-and-toning group was about the same at the end as it was at the beginning.

The two groups were balanced in age, gender, social status and other demographic factors so that played no part in the results.

Good for beginners

Hatha yoga is an ancient spiritual practice that involves meditation and focused breathing while an individual moves through a series of stylized postures. Neha Gothe, who led the study, says that makes it well-suited to beginners.

"Hatha yoga requires focused effort in moving through the poses, controlling the body and breathing at a steady rate," Gothe said. "It is possible that this focus on one's body, mind and breath during yoga practice may have generalized to situations outside of the yoga classes, resulting in an improved ability to sustain attention."

The Mayo Clinic also sees attributes to yoga that make it a helpful exercise for older adults. It can lead to better balance, flexibility, range of motion and strength. That means a senior regularly practicing yoga might be less likely to fall or be injured during other daily activities.

The Yoga Health Foundation cites studies suggesting yoga can even help patients manage diabetes. The studies showed that practicing yoga improved nerve function in patents' hands.

Before you start

It's a good idea talk to your doctor before starting a yoga program if you are over 50 and have any of the following conditions:

• A herniated disk
• A risk of blood clots
• Deconditioned state
• Eye conditions, including glaucoma
• Hyperthyroidism
• Pregnancy
• Severe balance problems
• Severe osteoporosis
• Uncontrolled blood pressure

There are plenty of books, videos and TV programs that can guide you through the process. However, most people find it more helpful to start with a class led by a qualified instructor.

Aging can bring with it cognitive decline. Everything from full-blown dementia to those frustrating “senior moments,” when you lose track of your thoughts.

Researchers have found that stress can be an aggravating factor. It saps both physical and mental energy as we get older.

It can contribute to high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease. Stress releases the hormone cortisol, which can damage brain neurons and make it harder for seniors to learn and remember.

Damaging cortisol

But researchers at Loma Linda University have looked deeper into cortisol’s relationship to memory and come up with a novel theory.

You've heard the expression “laughter is the best medicine?” The researchers take that literally.

The researchers gathered a group of healthy elderly individuals and a group of elderly people with diabetes and had them watch a 20-minute funny video. At the conclusion both groups completed a memory assessment that measured their learning, recall, and sight recognition.

Their performance was recorded and compared to a control group of elderly people who did not view the video. Cortisol concentrations for both groups were also recorded at the beginning and end of the experiment.

Results

Cortisol concentrations were sharply lower among both groups that watched the video. Perhaps not coincidentally, the senior who watched the video also showed greater improvement in all areas of the memory assessment.

The seniors with diabetes showed the most dramatic benefit in cortisol level changes. The group of healthy seniors produced the most significant changes in memory test scores.

Dr. Gurinder Singh Bains, an author of the study, says the results potentially offer an effective and inexpensive addition to wellness programs for the elderly.

“The cognitive components — learning ability and delayed recall — become more challenging as we age and are essential to older adults for an improved quality of life: mind, body, and spirit,” he said. “Although older adults have age-related memory deficits, complimentary, enjoyable, and beneficial humor therapies need to be implemented for these individuals.”

The take-away, the researchers say, is seniors can slow memory decline by reducing stress, and laughing is an easy and pleasant way to do that. Not to mention inexpensive.

History

Laughter therapy is not exactly new. In the 1970s writer Norman Cousins recovered from a debilitating arthritis, he said, by taking massive amounts of vitamin C and spending several minutes a day laughing at Marx Brothers movies.

"I made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep," he wrote. "When the pain-killing effect of the laughter wore off, we would switch on the motion picture projector again and not infrequently, it would lead to another pain-free interval."

Previous research

Previous research has also indicated a link between humor and health. Keith Adams, a British laughter therapist, cites a September 2011 study from from Oxford University, demonstrating that continuous laughter significantly increases people’s pain threshold, by as much as 10%.

Berk explains it this way; the act of laughter – or simply enjoying some humor – increases the release of endorphins and dopamine in the brain. That, in turn, provides a sense of pleasure and reward.

These changes make the immune system work better. There are even changes in brain wave activity towards what's called the "gamma wave band frequency", which also amp up memory and recall.

“So, indeed, laughter is turning out to be not only a good medicine, but also a memory enhancer adding to our quality of life,” Berk said.

Say the word “rosemary.” What does it bring to mind -- the girl that got away, a fragrant food seasoning, a Simon and Garfunkel song? The whole point is -- bringing something to mind.

A new study finds that essential oil of rosemary has an effect on the ability of healthy adults to remember things in the past and even to do things in the future, like taking medication at the right time.

In addition the study, being presented at the British Psychological Society's annual conference, found the improvement in memory had nothing to do with the participants' mood. That suggests a chemical influence was responsible. The researchers think this could improve the everyday lives of people with age-related memory loss.

Lengthy track record

The ties between rosemary and memory and fidelity are well documented. Ancient Egyptians used it in weddings and funeral rituals. Shakespeare knew, too. In "Hamlet," Ophelia points out that rosemary is for “remembrance: pray you, love, remember."

Other studies had already suggested that compounds in rosemary aroma could improve long-term memory and mental arithmetic, by inhibiting enzymes which block normal brain functioning.

"We wanted to build on our previous research that indicated rosemary aroma improved long-term memory and mental arithmetic,” said Dr. Mark Moss, who led the study. "We focused on prospective memory, which involves the ability to remember events that will occur in the future and to remember to complete tasks at particular times [which] is critical for everyday functioning."

Conducting the study

The researchers divided the 66 participants into two groups and asked them to wait in different rooms -- one of which had been scented with rosemary essential oil.

The volunteers then completed a series of memory tests -- such things as hiding objects and finding them again later, or passing a specified object to a researcher at a time which had been specified earlier.

Those assigned to the rosemary-scented room performed better at both types of test. They were also found to have higher levels of 1,8-cineole, a compound found in rosemary oil, in their blood. The compound has previously been shown to influence chemical systems in the body which have an impact on memory.

"These findings may have implications for treating individuals with memory impairments,” said Jemma McCready, a research intern who carried out the study."Remembering when and where to go and for what reasons underpins everything we do, and we all suffer minor failings that can be frustrating and sometimes dangerous. Further research is needed to investigate if this treatment is useful for older adults who have experienced memory decline.”