Chinese Herbs and Alternative Medicine Supplements for Dementia

For many years , complementary medicine studies have focused on the benefits of Chinese herbs over geriatric mental issues such as vascular dementia. Since in Chinese tradition the power of the herbs is used for centuries for preventing and treating mental problems it is helpful to know what do recent studies say.

Chinese Herbs and Alternative Medicine Supplements for Dementia

Meta-Analyses

Numerous studies conducted over the years doubted the results obtained by Chinese herbs like huperzine A and gingko-biloba, based on the lack of scientific reviews of this treatment used on dementia patients. Although commonly recommended, this treatment was not officially evaluated.

The  Neural Regeneration Research conducted such a specialized review analyzing the efficiency of the treatment via specialized research studies like Hasegawa Dementia Scale and Mini-Mental State Examination.

The Results

According to this recent study the Chinese herbs seem to be not only safer but also more effective in treating the symptoms of vascular dementia. The results show that in the clinic cases the potential for Chinese herbs is bigger than for conventional control measures.

Preventing Dementia

Apart from gingko-biloba, the alternative medicine offers several other supplements which can both prevent and control the vascular dementia.

Omega 3 acids are commonly used to prevent strokes and cognitive impairment. The Chinese diet is rich in fish and nuts especially because the tradition recorded that these foods are able to prevent many mental health issues. Also Omega 3 supplements have shown a positive result in Alzheimer patients.

Vitamin E is also used in treating dementia with good result. However a large intake of Vitamin E can increase the chance of mortality in the case of patients with heart problems. This is why doctors advise caution in using this supplement.

Studies also focused on the results from treating dementia with Coenzyme Q10 in its synthetic form called idebenone. So far only positive results were recorded but doctors require further studies until approving the treatment 100%.

Complementary Therapies

Listening to peaceful music and peaceful environmental sounds, pet therapy but also aromatherapy and massage can help preventing and treating any mental impairment conditions. Extreme positive result came from using these therapies on Alzheimer patients from nursing homes.

Further studies are to be conducted  to establish the exact benefits of alternative cures like Chinese herbs and complementary therapies on dementia. More and more people are keen to try these remedies and it’s logical for the science to offer them a realistic evaluation.