You may have seen those viral ads on Facebook or YouTube, claiming that a simple but special Salt or Honey or Blueberry recipe can reverse Alzheimer’s disease (AD) or memory loss, often in just a few weeks. They look convincing. Some even show apparently real CNN or 60 Minute clips featuring famous doctors like Ben Carson, Steven Gundry, Sanjay Gupta, Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil, Dr Peter Attia or other famous people like Elon Musk discussing a “breakthrough therapy.” These ads claim a rare Salt or Himalayan honey, Bilberry or some other simple mix of several nutrients, or a sound wave device, can flush out toxins, rebuild memory, and reverse dementia.
Unfortunately, however, they are all amazingly well crafted scams! We hope you have not fallen for any of these, but many of our readers have, even particularly bright people like doctors, lawyers, health minded moms and dads. And they seem not to be going away, in fact they are on the rise – particularly on Facebook. However, they look so legitimate, how can one tell they are not? And what can you share with family and friends to convince them not to waste their money, and where they can go to find what really helps.
Patterns or Features to look for:
But do be skeptical of what you see and hear – and if it sounds too good or too easy to be true it probably is. So what is the truth, what is really happen here? Or how can you find the truth?
Most of these misleading ads start with a real interview or true discovery. For example, in the most recent ad featuring Dr. Attia, they start out by noting that the prevailing theory of the cause of Alzheimer’s, i.e. the amyloid hypothesis has now been shown to be based on a false premise. That is true. It now appears amyloid plaques are a result not the cause of brain damage.
They go on to suggest that theory can be replaced by the idea that damage to axons and myelin from 5G electro-magnetic frequencies (EMF), is the primary cause of AD. But although these may be significant contributing factors, leading to AD like symptoms, there are many other major contributing factors which they ignore.
Dale Bedesen, M.D., from UCLA, has noted (click here then scroll down to his video and fast forward to 12:50) there are at least 6 different major causes (or types) of Alzheimer’s. (Things that can go wrong in different parts of the brain, that could result in cognitive decline or deficits typical of Alzheimer’s patients. These include inflammation, malnutrition, damage from excess sugar and other toxins in our food and environment, poor circulation and head trauma.) And at least 40 more possible contributors, things that can go wrong to cause problems in these areas. So it’s statistically improbable that a simple formula of only a few good things like Bilberry and grape seed extract, is going to help most of those with this diagnosis, given the wide variety of causes.
Here is where they depart from reality, the truth and evidence, and replace those with creative BS (bad science), falsehoods, suggesting that these two ingredients can repair that myelin.
According to a pubmed, AI and an internet review of the research, while these are healthy foods that can promote brain health and function “There is no solid human evidence that either bilberry extract or OPC (grape‑seed) extract can repair the myelin sheath,” or reverse Alzheimer’s.
Moreover, the solutions these ads encourage, rather they be blueberries, grape seed extract, honey and bacopa, or salt, are simply not powerful enough to prevent, arrest or reverse Alzheimer’s (AD). And in each ad the encouraging dialogue of the doctors represented there is all fabricated with high tech impersonation technology.
Moreover, most if not all of the evidence (studies and testimonials) they use to claim otherwise, are also fabrications. And a simple check on PubMed, the internet or any good AI program will usually show that.
For example, in the ad with Dr Attia, they site and show two studies in PubMed, but when we attempted to check those out, the second study on advancements in Alzheimer’s was about advancements in early detection nothing about nutrition at all. And the first study, with NeuroDyne (the new formula) in the title, simply does not exist. It appears to have been a total fabrication.
In some cases it’s helpful to check out their website, but unfortunately their official internet site has been taken down – another bad sign.
Hopefully the info above is sufficient to persuade anyone you may know, that most of these new slick ads claiming Alzheimer’s, or other health issues, can be cured or reversed by some simple home remedy or pill, are simply scams. In fact, if you ever find yourself snagged by an ad, and it seems compelling but too good to be true, before you purchase anything go to the internet and do a search on the name of the produce and “scam”. If it is a scam, someone has most likely written about it. Here are two good reviews on the NeuroDyne ad.
Watch this video. Or Read this review.
Another thing you can do with products is to go to Amazon.com and see if they carry it, and read the reviews. But make sure you check the ingredients. As in the case with NeuroDyne, a quick review on Amazon revealed at least 3 products with the same name, and a similar look, but with different ingredients.
How do they get away with this? They appear to be coming from outside the US, where our FTC, FDA, FBI or other federal investigative agencies have no jurisdiction.
What To Do If You Have Been The Victim of Such A Scam
If you or someone you know has already paid money for a supplement now identified as a scam, we would encourage you to contact your credit card company as soon as possible and inform them of the transaction. They will likely ask if you have contacted the vendor for a refund. If so, call or email the organization you purchased the product from. Hopefully the vendor has a website you can go to (google the name of the product to find their website). If you cannot find their site or if you have received the product, look for a number or email address on the invoice or product you received. If you can find a number, call and ask for a refund. Record any calls you make to them, if you can. If they do not have a working number but do have an email address or contact form on their site, fill that out, or email them. Then report the outcome of the call and/or any other efforts to contact them, to your credit card company.
This is one of the reasons why this site was developed, to help the public discern what’s effective in this field and what is not. But there are two areas on this site that may be of particular help: Supplements to Consider and Personal Assessment. Or you can just give us a call at 801-529-8238.
For Supplements to Consider click on the Brain Health Essentials tab at the top of our home page. This will take you to Step 1 “The Critical Role of Nutrition.” If you click on that you will see the subheading “Supplements to Consider.” This contains a review of various nutrients found in some of the best formulas that have been carefully studied. We will be expanding this in the near future, and next month we will share with you a relatively new supplement shown in a University study to genuinely help arrest and even reverse significant symptoms in nearly 50% of advanced AD participants. But it’s not magic, and it doesn’t do that overnight.
A New Study One of the M.D.s on the American Brain Council was recently selected to head up a study on a new medication for Alzheimer’s patients that has shown significant efficacy in a pilot study, and has now been approved for a larger clinical trial. If you know someone who has Alzheimer’s and lives in the Intermountain West, who might be interested in participating in this trial, call us at the number above for more information.
Personal Assessment. As noted above there are more than 40 possible contributors to cognitive decline. And as Dr. Bredesen has shown, the more of these one can identify and address, the greater the likelihood of progress. That is how Dr. Bredesen reversed AD symptoms in 9 of 10 patients. And thousands of others in the world have now done likewise. But it all starts with a good assessment.
Finally, feel free to call us for assistance with an assessment that will help you identify which nutrients and activities might be most important for you in developing a plan that will be suitable and effective for addressing your needs.
David R. Larsen, MFHD
American Brain Council
