Forget Me Not Newsletter – 1st Quarter 2014

OUR MISSION
The Alzheimer’s Research & Prevention Foundation (ARPF) is dedicated to the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease by funding research studies and providing educational outreach and memory screenings.
INSIDE
On the Cover:
• President’s Message
Page 2:
• New SAC Member
• News from the Senate
Aging Committee
Page 3:
• What Others Are Saying
Page 4:
• ARPF Outreach Update
Page 5:
• ARPF Research Update
Page 6-7:
• Donor List – Thank You!
Page 8:
• Keep in Touch!

OFFICERS AND BOARD MEMBERS
President/Medical Director
Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D.
Vice President
Randal Brooks, MA, LPC
Treasurer
Carolyn S. Sechler, CPA
Secretary
Kirti K. Khalsa
Member
Carolyn Lucz
Communications Director
Conni Ingallina
Public Relations
The Professional Image
SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COUNCIL
Ma Gloria Borras-Boneu, M.D.
GRD Health Institute – Barcelona, Spain
Karen E. Innes, MSPH, Ph.D.
Western Virginia University School of Public Health – Morgantown, WV
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women’s Hospital – Boston, MA
Miia Kivipelto, M.D., Ph.D.
Aging Research Center and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Karolinska Institute – Stockholm, Sweden
Karen Koffler, M.D.
Medical Director, Canyon Ranch Miami Beach Miami Beach, FL
Helen Lavretsky, M.D., M.S.
Professor, Department of Psychiatry UCLA Semel Institute and Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital – Los Angeles, CA
Roberta A. Lee, M.D.
Vice Chair, Department of Integrative Medicine Beth Israel Medical Center – New York, NY
George Perry, Ph.D.
Dean and Professor, College of Sciences University of Texas at San Antonio – San Antonio, TX
Michelle Sierpina, Ph.D.
Founding Director
UTMB Osher Institute for Lifelong Learning University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
Yaakov Stern, Ph.D.
Director, Cognitive Neuroscience Division Taub Institute for the Study of Alzheimer’s disease and the Aging Brain Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons – New York, NY

“Your Stories”
Contest winner, Kay McDonald
Thanks for this opportunity to share a story about my wonderful dad, Gage Mersereau.
He was such a kind man to people and animals.
Most of all he loved dogs….every dog! And every dog loved him. My family used to joke that he loved them more than his own children.
Sadly, my father came down with Alzheimers and after three years of home care we had to move him to a special facility. Although he could never convey it, I think the hardest part of the transition for him….was no pets.
I visited him with my dog (his granddog) Rufus weekly…..and his spirits would soar. The unique bond between animals and people was truly amplified when I saw how he reacted with Rufus. The other residents also lit up when my Rufus came to visit.
My father died in hospice last year after breaking his hip and not being able to recover. When we moved him from the hospital to the hospice center they recommended to bring all the family dogs…because he would know they were there in his final moments. He slipped away while I held his hand, and Rufus was there with him.
I know he is now at peace and probably romping will all of his childhood pets.

“Forget-Me-Not”
N E W S L E T T E R

President’s Message
Why Alzheimer’s Prevention Is Now A Reality

Do you believe in synchronicity?
Or what I sometimes call synchrodestiny?
Regardless of what you call it, the meaning is the same: something that you find just when you need it. It’s like a great coincidence only better. Has it ever happened to you? Well, today it happened to me.
I was preparing to write my President’s Message and synchronistically was guided to a new scientific article entitled Neuroprotective Pathways: Lifestyle Activity, Brain Pathology And Cognition In Cognitively Normal Older Adults that just came out in a leading medical journal called Neurobiology of Aging.
This study, done at The University of California at Berkley and Northwestern University, examined 92 healthy individuals, aged between 60 and 90, with no reported memory problems. The researchers measured their cognitive activity (such as reading, writing letters and playing games), as well as their physical activity (such as cycling, dancing and swimming), in their early life, mid-life, and currently. They then correlated their activity to various sophisticated medical tests such as advanced scans, including those that use tracers, to uncover how much amyloid plaque and other abnormal findings were seen in the participants’ brain.
The results were quite compelling and led the author of the study to state: “Lifestyle activity may thus promote cognitive health in aging by protecting against cerebrovascular pathology and A? (amyloid) pathology thought to be relevant to Alzheimer’s disease development.”
What this article tells us is that what we’ve been saying here at your ARPF about The Four Pillars of Alzheimer’s Prevention using a holistic, integrative or lifestyle approach can no longer be denied. Beyond that, I’m especially excited and encouraged because this new study confirms the latest research of our partners in Finland and Sweden, as well as UCLA and The University of West Virginia, where we are continuing our innovative yoga meditation research.
So what we can say now without a doubt is that living a brain healthy lifestyle will definitely keep you young and sharp at every age and stage of life.
Please do yourself and your family a huge favor. If you’re not living an Alzheimer’s Prevention Lifestyle, do everything you can to start now! It’s crucial that you do. When you do, please know that you will help yourself create a lifetime of peak mental performance.
May all your memories be great,
Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D.
Founding President/Medical Director

Meet Our New Scientific Advisory Council Member
Miia Kivipelto, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Clinical Geriatric Epidemiology
at Karolinska Institutet
Deputy Head of the Aging Research Center
Stockholm, Sweden
Miia’s research focuses on prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of cognitive impairment, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Through epidemiological studies she has identified midlife vascular and lifestyle risk factors for later dementia/AD and aims to build on these observations to improve knowledge transfer and public awareness and to design intervention trials to mitigate these factors including lifestyle manipulations, such as exercise interventions.
Miia is principal investigator for the population-based study Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging and Dementia (CAIDE) and the Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER), one of the first multi-domain intervention studies in the world aimed at preventing or postponing dementia. She is also part of a Europe’s first-ever European Dementia Prevention Initiative (EDPI). Miia leads a group of multidisciplinary researchers that includes 4 postdocs and 9 doctoral students. Her group has close connections with the University of Eastern Finland and the National Institute of Health and Welfare in Helsinki and this collaboration has led to the development of the Nordic Brain Network (NBN), which has increased the utilization and exchange of resources and information about aging. She is also involved in many international networks and scientific/steering committees. Miia has received several awards including: Junior Chamber International: Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World 2011; Academy of Finland Award for Social Impact 2009; The Association of European Psychiatrists and European Bristol-Myers Squibb Prevention Award in Psychiatry 2007 and Martti Hämäläinen’s Award for Young Researcher 2002.
Dr. Kivipelto is also the recipient of a research grant from ARPF to study the effect of the FINGER study lifestyle interventions on telomeres. Preliminary results of this study are expected by the end of 2014.

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Senate Aging Committee Launches New Anti-Fraud Hotline, Enhanced Website to Assist Seniors
WASHINGTON, DC – If you or someone you know suspect you’ve been victim of a scam or fraud aimed at seniors, the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging has set up a new toll-free hotline to help.
The hotline was unveiled today to make it easier for senior citizens to report suspected fraud and receive assistance. It will be staffed by a team of committee investigators weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. The investigators, who have experience with investment scams, identity theft, bogus sweepstakes and lottery schemes, Medicare and Social Security fraud, and a variety of other senior exploitation issues, will directly examine complaints and, if appropriate, refer them to the proper authorities.
Anyone with information about suspected fraud can call the toll-free fraud hotline at 1-855-303-9470, or contact the committee through its website, located at http://www.aging.senate.gov/fraud-hotline.
As chairman and ranking member of the committee, Sens. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Susan Collins (R-ME) have made consumer protection and fraud prevention a primary focus of the committee’s work. This year the panel has held hearings examining Jamaican lottery scams, tax-related identity theft, Social Security fraud and payday loans impact on seniors.
“If you’re contacted about an offer that sounds too good to be true, then it probably is,” Nelson said. “This new hotline will give seniors a resource to turn to for assistance if they think they’ve been victimized or have questions about fraudulent activities.”
“Ensuring that seniors are as equipped as possible to avoid becoming victims of fraud and other scams is among our committee’s top priorities,” said Collins. “This new hotline offered by the Senate Special Committee on Aging will help to identify and put a stop to the cruel scams that hurt seniors and their families.”
The hotline’s unveiling also coincides with the committee’s launch of an enhanced senior-friendly website. The site’s new features include large print, simple navigation and an uncluttered layout that enables seniors to find information more easily and conveniently. Online visitors can also increase text size, change colors or view a text-only version of the site.
To view the new website, visit www.aging.senate.gov

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ARPF Outreach Update
by Conni Ingallina, ARPF Communications Director

2014. Another year. If you are like me, that thought comes with a twinge of “where did the time go?” It seems like yesterday was Christmas! Yet each day brings new and exciting things and here at the ARPF is no exception. On the heels of a fabulous 20th anniversary celebration, we continue to build on that momentum in our outreach programs.
We have been blessed with many volunteers who are so interested in our mission that they incorporate it into their own businesses and help us to get the word out in all kinds of ways—healthfairs, yoga classes, conferences, retirement communities, churches, local events, presentations and more. These “outreach reps” are all over the country and send us lots of pictures and updates of what they are doing. I’d like to share this volunteer story with you:
Jamie, from Wisconsin, has participated in many ARPF events. Here she shares with us, “For the past two years I have been invited to be a speaker as part of a company’s wellness program. They specifically were looking for someone to provide holistic resources which I find fabulous and quite progressive. Many of my topics utilize education and resources from the Vedic sciences focusing on stress reduction and healthier lifestyles. This is the second time I have been asked to do this specific program topic and it continues to be a popular draw. Several people in the group either had a family member with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, or were concerned about them developing a cognitive imbalanced condition. The participants in the group were in the age range of 40’s to early 60’s and are actively looking for wellness support. Dr. Khalsa’s information on how the brain works and is affected by stress is helpful for people to have a better picture of what’s happening.”
We are grateful for the enthusiasm of these and all of our volunteers as they not only utilize the 4 Pillars of Alzheimer’s Prevention™ in their daily lives, but go the extra mile to spread the word.
If you are interested in incorporating the ARPF message in your community, give us a call. Join with us as we spread the word and work of Alzheimer’s Prevention, celebrating life in all that we do.
Blessings, Conni

I am editor of a newsletter for seniors and do a lot of research for articles. I came across Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation and found it to be a very useful tool. Their research for Alzheimer’s disease is innovative and the reports detailed enough for the professional yet easy enough for family members and caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients to understand. They offer insight on treatment options that are “outside the box” and without the use of a lot of medications. Keep up the great work!