Cognitive decline is NOT inevitable.
The SHARP Mind
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15% of the world’s population will develop Alzheimer’s dementia by 2050, devastating families and costing trillions of dollars to manage.
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There is no known cure for dementia, but not for lack of trying.
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400+ clinical trials of monotherapies (one drug for one disease) have yet to yield a breakthrough in dementia therapy.
That doesn’t mean you’re left helpless in this fight.
The SHARP Mind Program
The SHARP MIND Program, was created at Case Integrative Health, to leverage tools from across our global medical system to fight cognitive decline.
The program combines research, testing, and methodologies from the fields of Integrative Medicine and Neurology to develop a comprehensive view of ALL possible sources of cognitive decline.
With a complete picture in hand, Dr. Mafee builds individualized SHARP Mind plans that incorporate rigorous therapeutic lifestyle elements with other interventions as appropriate.
This slow and deliberate process is vital to making any significant clinical change, and to set you for a lifetime of good brain health.
The SHARP Mind Program includes:
Process:
Developing a comprehensive plan for improving cognition requires time – something many clinics aren’t willing to devote. Expect the Case Integrative Health team to commit heavily to the process.
Consults:
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A 2 hour visit to develop your initial plan
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2x 60-minute visits with a Health Coach to help translate the plan into your life and schedule
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A 60 minute “Fast Follow-up” to check and adjust progress including a lab review and progress evaluation
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Weekly check-in with the Health Coach to help new behaviors become permanent habits (optional)
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Long-term follow-ups with Dr. Mafee to re-check labs and adjust the plan as needed
Testing:
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Cognitive Assessment Testing: Initial and follow-up testing to set a cognitive baseline and track improvements
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Standard Lab Testing: Extensive standard labs (billable to insurance) can tell us a lot about how your body is supporting - or straining - your brain
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Specialty Lab Testing: Cutting-edge specialty tests provide more detail on biochemical and toxin markers, genetic testing, and possibly infectious diseases
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MRI of the brain with volumetric: This insurance-billable MRI is instrumental to carefully assess different regions of the brain and their density so that we can track this over time with treatment.
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Sleep: We encourage patients to undergo an overnight pulse oximetry assessment or a formal sleep study to determine how well they are flushing toxins out each night.
Your Program:
We treat each patient as an individual case. There is no one-size-fits-all approach or ‘master protocol’. Rather we use a set of tools to identify and build your plan tailored to you. Broadly speaking, plans will include recommendations in three categories:
Lifestyle Choices:
Your daily habits have a large impact on your brain’s performance and longevity. Tailoring your routine to your specific needs will is the foundation, and largest part, of any plan.
Prescriptions and Supplements:
In some cases, medications and/or supplements may help accelerate recovery.
Intervention:
For some patients, more intensive interventions may be appropriate to jump-start a program. These can range from simple injections like Vitamin D or B12, to daily routines with peptides all the way to weekly IV treatments.
Interventions are dictated by the patient’s underlying symptoms and test results and are built during the first or second visit.
Lifestyle modifications may include:
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Sleep: Sleep is when your brain flushes toxins. Poor sleep quality/quantity can play a major role in cognitive decline.
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Diet: Mildly ketogenic diets that focus on healthy fats and proteins over carbs are proven to reduce brain inflammation and lower the toxic effects of sugar. Mix in brain-boosting foods with specific recommendations based on your lab results and you have your ultimate brain health diet!
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Exercise: An expanding body of research is demonstrating that muscle growth triggers a chain reaction that leads to enhanced connections between neurons. Specific types of exercises support the brain more than others, so developing a plan to incorporate those moves is key.
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Stress: Stress produces several reactions in the body that can harm your brain over time. Working with the Case Integrative Health team to develop a plan for managing stressors (e.g. neurofeedback, breath techniques, meditation, biofeedback) will help eliminate a major anchor to improved cognition.
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Brain Stimulation: Whether learning a new hobby or through formally directed brain stimulation platforms, brain training is vital to ensuring proper neuroplasticity. There are several types of options, so working with Dr. Mafee and the team to select the right ones for your life will be important.
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Detox: Sadly, environmental toxins are a part of nearly everything in modern life – food, personal care products, air, tap water, homes, and offices are all sources of several types of cognitive diminishing chemicals. To maximize the impact of your other lifestyle changes, we’ll work with you to reduce exposure to environmental toxins.
Prescriptions: While there are no medications that have proven successful in treating dementia, prescriptions may be useful to treat an underlying cause of cognitive decline (for example, a bacterial infection).
Supplements: Based on your specific case and lab results, CIH will formulate a specific supplement regimen. We try to keep the list of supplements as attenuated as possible, while achieving optimal levels of supportive vitamins, cofactors, and other scientifically indicated supplements.
