Ayurvedic medicinal plants for Alzheimer's disease

Tuesday June 10, 2014 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new review suggests that some medicinal plants or herbs can be used to prevent or even reverse Alzheimer's disease - an age-related, progressive neurodegenerative disease that doctors say has no cure.

Alzheimer's disease causes memory loss, abnormal behavior, changed personality, and cognitive decline.  The disease can be a terminal disease that eventually leads to death.  An estimated five million Americans suffer from this disease.

The review published in BioMed Central reveals that over a hundred new treatments derived from Ayurvedic medicine may potentially be used to prevent and or treat Alzheimer's disease and many of them are being tested in clinical trials.

The pharmacological activities of the medicinal plants against inflammation, amyloidogenesis, cholinesterase activity, hyperlipidemia, and lipid peroxidation or oxidative stress that are considered helpful in preventing and treating Alzheimer's disease are attributed to a range of natural compounds including alkaloids, lignans, flavonoids, polyphenols, triterpenes, tannins, and sterols.

The herbs that may be used or have been used to treat Alzheimer's disease are Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), Turmeric (Curcuma longa), Brahmi (Bacopa monnieri), Shankhpushpi (Convolvulus pluricaulis), Gotu kola (Centella asiatica), Jyotishmati (Celastrus paniculatus), Jatamansi (Nardostachys jatamansi), and Guggulu. (David Liu, PHD)

Reference

Rammohan V Rao, Olivier Descamps, Varghese John and Dale E Bredesen, Ayurvedic medicinal plants for Alzheimer's disease: a review,  Alzheimer's Research & Therapy 2012, 4:22