Alzheimer’s risk is real and rising as populations age. Today over 7 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s dementia, and the global burden of dementia is growing fast.Because treatment options are limited and disease-modifying therapies remain rare, many people and clinicians focus on lowering risk with lifestyle and metabolic strategies that protect brain function long term. That combination of urgency and limited therapies is why neuroscientists study safe, low-risk interventions, including some supplements, that could improve brain energy, blood flow and cellular repair. Dr. Robert W. Love, a neuroscientist, highlights three supplements as promising ways to support brain blood flow, energy metabolism and cellular repair.
Nitric oxide
Nitric-oxide boosters (usually dietary nitrates from beetroot or concentrated nitrate supplements) widen small blood vessels, improving blood flow. Better blood flow delivers more oxygen and nutrients to brain cells and can improve short-term cognitive performance and vascular function, useful for older adults whose cerebral blood flow is less flexible.
Creatine
Creatine supplies a quick reservoir of cellular energy (phosphocreatine) that cells, including neurons, use when demand spikes. In aging or stressed brains, boosting creatine stores can help neurons maintain function during metabolic stress, improving memory and processing in some people. Creatine is also well known to help muscle and bone health, so it has multi-system benefits that matter for healthy aging. In a recent study, creatine was found to improve cognition in patirnts with Alzheimer’s disease.
NMN((nicotinamide mononucleotide)
NMN is a precursor that cells use to make NAD+, a key molecule for cellular energy, DNA repair and mitochondrial function. NAD+ levels fall with age, and raising NAD+ can help cells produce energy more efficiently and support repair pathways that decline over time, effects that are conceptually linked to slowing cellular aging. Human trials show NMN raises blood NAD+ and can improve physical performance and some metabolic markers. A study published in journal GeroScience found NMN increased blood NAD+ concentrations and improved measures of physical performance and subjective health in middle-aged adults.Note: The information provided in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before starting any new medication or treatment and before changing your diet or supplement regimen.
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