Light Therapy for Alzheimer's Disease

Light treatments may make their way as a novel therapy to help people with Alzheimer’s disease as per a NIH (National Institutes of Health)-funded study “The Use of Rhythmic Light Therapy to Entrain Gamma Oscillations and the Circadian System in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD)”, to be done at The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School Of Medicine.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that leads to gradual memory loss and behavioral changes. It is characterized by the pathological hallmark formation of beta-amyloid plaques and the tau proteins in the brain tissues, long (almost 20 to 30 years) before the actual symptoms occur.

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‘Novel Light therapy that utilizes the induction of gamma waves of the brain to enhance cognition and sleep may help overcome debilitating symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. ’

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AD affects almost 6.2 million older Americans. Several researchers have explored countless strategies like high-tech drugs, diets, and crossword puzzles to overcome this mind-robbing neurological disorder.

However, ultimately we still fail to uncover the highly effective treatment for patients. The present project intends to test sleep-improving and cognition-boosting novel methodology (combination of light therapies) to solve the decades of AD research.

Power of Light

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“Light can be powerful but often overlooked health factor. We hope to harness the power of light to relieve the suffering that millions of Alzheimer’s disease patients and their loved ones experience every day,” says Mariana Figueiro, Ph.D., Director of the Light Health Research Center (LHRC) and Professor of Population Health Science and Policy at Icahn Mount Sinai and the recipient of the grant funded by the NIH’s National Institute on Aging.

One therapy will use flashing pulses of light at a frequency of 40 times per second, or 40 Hz designed to, that is, “gamma” waves of brains’ electrical activity. enhance cognition-boosting electrical brain waves.

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While the other one aims to help patients sleep better by combining the 40-Hz flashes with a light therapy that is designed to reset a patient’s sleep-wake cycle. The team states that daily doses of natural light are vital to maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Gamma brain wave activity is associated with learning and memory. Many studies have also suggested that the reduced gamma activity in Alzheimer’s patients.

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The Gamma Waves

The study would enroll Mount Sinai patients who are diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment. The light pulses will be delivered by a custom-made device, such as a box or goggles, developed at the LHRC.

The results obtained will be then compared to those obtained from age-matched control subjects. The study also states that gamma waves may help reduce the toxic plaque formation in Alzheimer’s brain.

“Our sleep-wake cycles play a critical role in brain health. By using a rigorous, two-pronged approach to light therapy it is possible that we could push the brains of Alzheimer’s patients into a healthier state,” says Dr. Figueiro.

Source-Medindia