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There are more than 75 million baby boomers in the United States. And as the biggest portion of this generation approaches retirement age, more and more of its members are becoming concerned about memory problems, particularly Alzheimer's disease. If you belong to the baby boomer generation, you should be concerned too; the common form of Alzheimer's disease can afflict anyone who is at least sixty years old. This disease can be more sporadic rather than hereditary, which is why Alzheimer's has become the most common cause for dementia and other ailments characterized by the decline in brain functioning.

Causes Of Alzheimer's Disease

Doctors have been continually baffled by what causes Alzheimer's. But one thing is for sure, as people age, a waxy fibrous stuff called amyloid starts to accumulate in the brain. Amyloid plaque is responsible for the degeneration of various tissues in the body; you can just imagine what this substance can do when it gathers in your brain.

On top of this, as you count the years that you have lived, millions of neurons found in the brain simply stop to send and receive impulses which are the primary means of communication for your brain cells. The overall effect is a total decline in your brain's ability to organize and handle thoughts. The obvious solution is for your brain to create new perfectly-functioning cells. But before you can even say replacement, your brain tells you that when you are sixty, it is already having a hard time or no longer capable of creating new cells.

Is It Really This Hopeless For Aging People?

The good news is that, various studies and researches about nutrition have been found to directly affect the brain's functioning. With the right kind of diet, you can protect your brain from Alzheimer's and reverse the effects of aging to your brain. Although these findings are relatively new, the link between food and the brain sounds promising.

The Antioxidant Story

The most prominent subject in the study about the connection between food and the brain is the one about antioxidants. Basically antioxidants are organic substances that are secreted by plants as a protection from cellular destabilization caused by free radicals. Antioxidants have been also found to effectively counter the oxidative deterioration that happens in the brain as you age.

Where do you find antioxidants? Well, if you take a look at fruits and vegetables that have bright appetizing colors, you have found your ticket away from Alzheimer's and other brain malfunctions. The bright colors exhibited by certain fruits and vegetables are actually caused by antioxidants; theoretically, the brighter and richer the color of a fruit or vegetable, the higher concentration of antioxidant substances.

If you eat fruits and vegetables that have high levels of antioxidants, you absorb the same substances that protect plants from elements like pollution and extreme weather conditions. Antioxidants in your body will help you reverse most of the effects of aging. From painful joints, to wrinkly skin, to ailing organs, up to a malfunctioning brain, antioxidants seem to be the real fountain of youth.

Generally speaking, foods rich in selenium, vitamins C and E, and beta-carotene are also rich in antioxidants. In the case of vitamins C and E, they boost your immune system in defending against any bacterial or viral attack. Selenium on the other hand has been known to help fight oxidation in the cells. But the most famous of all antioxidants is beta-carotene which can protect you from the harshness of solar radiation.