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Alzheimer's Disease is a brain disorder that destroys a person's memory and ability to learn on a gradual basis. It also affects and can destroy that person's ability to make critical judgments, reason, and carry out normal daily functions. As Alzheimer's disease advances, a person may also experience changes in their personality. They may start to exhibit anxiety and depression, agitation, delusions and hallucinations.

There are over 5 million people in the United States alone that suffer from Alzheimer's disease. This includes 4.9 million people who are over the age of 65. It is estimated that about 500,000 people under the age of 65 also suffer from early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

There is no cure for Alzheimer's disease, but there are new treatments used that can accelerate deep insight into the biology of the disease. Effective treatment and care along with loving support from family and friends can also improve the quality of life for people who are affected with the disease.

Some people who are in the early or middle stages of Alzheimer's disease can be prescribed medication such as Cognex. This medication can help alleviate some symptoms. Aricept and Exelon may keep some of the symptoms from becoming worse for a short period of time. Another drug, Namenda, was approved just recently in the United States. It combines memantine with some of the other Alzheimer's drugs and thereby making them much more effective than any one single therapy. There are also a variety of other medications that can help control behavioral problems such as agitation, wandering, anxiety and depression.

The cause of Alzheimer's is unknown, although many scientists believe that the disease beings with the build up of beta amyloid protein in the brain. Others believe that there may be a genetic risk that causes the disease. It is thought that if you have a parent or sibling with the disease that your chances of having the disease are increased.

Interestingly, a higher standard of education has been associated as protection against Alzheimer's disease. Smaller brains lead to fewer connections within the brain, and this can also be a cause of Alzheimer's disease. This has not been officially established, though. Another thought is that the disease is caused by high levels of aluminum, again with no conclusive proof.

Interestingly, a fruit known as mangosteen has been providing a variety of health benefits for many centuries. Scientific tests seem to point to the powerful compounds in mangosteen as helping to alleviate the inflammatory processes in the brain's structural cells.

These breakthrough studies show that mangosteen can actually help with the associated inflammatory conditions of the brain when it comes to Alzheimer's disease.

Improvement in function of the brain from using mangosteen has been seen in an allopathic doctor's patients, who were already being treated with the traditional Alzheimer's drugs. This is really remarkable because most of the drugs that are being used in treatment of the disease are not able to increase any function in the patients. The only thing that they can even hope to do is to slow down the progression of the disease. Although, there is still much research needed, this study on mangosteen is definitely a huge step forward.