You've only got one brain, so the last thing you need is a buildup of beta-amyloid.

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), beta-amyloid protein creates plaque that weakens nerve cell function in the brain.

Fortunately, there are several steps you can take that may reduce risk of amyloid buildup...

• Exercise daily
• Increase omega-3 fatty acid intake
• Increase vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid intake (these vitamins reduce homocysteine, which has been linked to amyloid formation)
• Use supplementary curcumin (antioxidant and anti- inflammatory properties are believed to break up amyloid)
• Increase intake of EGCG (a green tea flavonoid)

New studies offer two additional ways amyloid buildup might be avoided.

One of them...well, let's call it a long shot. A long shot at best. But the other is more realistic, so we'll start there.

In a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, Framingham Heart Study researchers report on leptin – a hormone that's believed to remove amyloid and help keep synapses flexible.

Blood levels of leptin were measured in 785 Framingham subjects with an average age of 79. Eight years later, higher leptin levels were clearly linked to lower risk of dementia and AD. MRI images also linked low leptin levels to reduced brain volume – a typical Alzheimer's trait.

As I've mentioned before, leptin levels tend to be higher in people who regularly get enough sleep. High fructose corn syrup intake has also been linked to lower leptin.

Now for the long shot...

Here's the Reuters Health headline that caught my eye: "Could a Cell Phone Protect You from Alzheimer's?"

Sound loopy? Maybe just loopy enough to work.

First step: Genetically alter mice to develop AD. Step two: Conduct tests to confirm memory loss in the AD mice. Step three: Expose the mice to electromagnetic waves equal to the amount you and I would be exposed to if we used a cell phone two hours each day for seven to nine months. Step three: Retest memory.

University of South Florida researchers actually expected AD to become more pronounced in the exposed mice. Instead, the AD mice exposed to electromagnetic waves scored just as well on memory tests as older mice without AD.

In fact, according to a press release from the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, when exposure was started in some of the AD mice when they were young (before memory impairment was evident), cognitive function appeared to be PROTECTED as they aged.

And even more impressive: Exposure to electromagnetic waves actually erased brain deposits of beta-amyloid.

The South Florida researchers plan to test the technique in humans. And while it's too early to encourage AD patients to chat like teens on cell phones, the prospect of an inexpensive, non-drug treatment for AD is pretty intriguing.