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Related terms: Presenile Dementia, SDAT, Senile dementia Alzheimer's Type, Alzheimers
Targeting 9 Risk Factors Could Prevent 1 in 3 Dementia Cases: Study
Posted 8 minutes ago by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, July 20, 2017 – One-third of dementia cases worldwide might be prevented by paying attention to nine risk factors throughout life, researchers say. These measures include: staying in school until you're at least over the age of 15; reducing hearing loss, obesity and high blood pressure in mid-life (ages 45 to 65); and reducing smoking, depression, physical inactivity, social isolation and diabetes in later life (65 and older). Taking care of these risk factors would possibly prevent 35 percent of dementia cases, the study findings suggested. In comparison, targeting the major genetic risk factor – known as ApoE – would prevent less than one in 10 dementia cases (7 percent), the study authors said. The three risk factors that could potentially make the most difference in preventing dementia include: staying in school (which would reduce dementia cases by 8 percent); reducing ... Read more
Related support groups: Depression, High Blood Pressure, Obesity, Diabetes, Type 2, Major Depressive Disorder, Hypertension, Smoking, Dementia, Smoking Cessation, Alzheimer's Disease, Insulin Resistance, Pre-Diabetes, Dysthymia, Diabetes Mellitus, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Hearing Loss, Abnormal Glucose Tolerance, Hypertensive Heart Disease, Dementia with Depressive Features, Lewy Body Dementia
Can Poor Sleep Boost Odds for Alzheimer's?
Posted 2 days ago by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, July 18, 2017 – Breathing problems during sleep may signal an increased risk for Alzheimer's disease, a trio of studies suggests. And, the researchers added, treating conditions like sleep apnea and hypopnea (shallow breathing) might lower the risk of dementia, or at least slow its progression. "What's exciting about these three studies is that they are looking at biological changes in the brain that may underlie a relationship between sleep problems and Alzheimer's disease," said Keith Fargo. He is director of scientific programs and outreach at the Alzheimer's Association. Fargo cautioned, however, that these studies only show an association between sleep problems and Alzheimer's disease, and not a cause-and-effect link. But it's possible that the development of the amyloid plaque that is a tell-tale sign of Alzheimer's is causing sleep problems, he noted. People with sleep ... Read more
Related support groups: Sleep Disorders, Insomnia, Fatigue, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Sleep Apnea, Shift Work Sleep Disorder, Mild Cognitive Impairment
Special Training Plus Medication Might Help People With Advanced Alzheimer's
Posted 2 days 1 hour ago by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, July 18, 2017 – People with advanced Alzheimer's can relearn some basic skills when they receive special training along with medication, a small study suggests. The research, which included 20 Alzheimer's patients, tested a program that combines specialized "memory coaching" with other services – including training and support groups for family caregivers. Researchers found that adding the program to medication – memantine (Namenda) – improved patients' ability to perform everyday tasks, such as dressing and bathing themselves, over six months. While the study group was small, the results demonstrate a basic point, according to lead researcher Dr. Barry Reisberg. "People with more-severe Alzheimer's can still learn," said Reisberg, a professor of psychiatry at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City. As Alzheimer's progresses, Reisberg explained, people have increasing ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Exelon, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Rivastigmine, Galantamine, Reminyl, Razadyne, Razadyne ER
Dozens of Potential Alzheimer's Meds in the Pipeline
Posted 2 days 1 hour ago by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, July 18, 2017 – Nearly three dozen new Alzheimer's drugs may begin clinical trials in the next five years, researchers say. That includes 27 drugs in phase 3 clinical trials, which are later in the drug review process. It also includes eight drugs in phase 2 clinical trials, according to an analysis by ResearchersAgainstAlzheimer's (RA2) investigators, an UsAgainstAlzheimer's network. "The Alzheimer's disease pipeline, marred by decades of failures and underinvestment, is due for big victories," said George Vradenburg, UsAgainstAlzheimer's co-founder and chair. "Thanks to growing investment from industry leaders, we remain cautiously optimistic that the current crop of late-stage Alzheimer's innovations will bring much-needed solutions to families in the near future," he said in a network news release. A new drug for Alzheimer's hasn't been approved in the United States since ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Exelon, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Rivastigmine, Galantamine, Reminyl, Razadyne, Razadyne ER, Lewy Body Dementia
Can Daily Crossword Protect You From Dementia?
Posted 2 days 22 hours ago by Drugs.com
MONDAY, July 17, 2017 – Doing a crossword puzzle every day may help keep your brain sharp as you age, researchers report. The British study of people aged 50 and older found the more often they did word puzzles, the higher they scored on attention, reasoning and memory tests. "We found direct relationships between the frequency of word puzzle use and the speed and accuracy of performance on nine cognitive tasks assessing a range of aspects of function including attention, reasoning and memory," said researcher Keith Wesnes. He's a professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Exeter in England. Performance was consistently better in those who reported engaging in puzzles, and generally improved incrementally with the frequency of puzzle use, he said. "For example, on test measures of grammatical reasoning speed and short-term memory accuracy, performing word puzzles was ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Arteriosclerotic Dementia, Drug-Induced Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Dementia with Depressive Features, Arteriosclerotic Dementia w/ Depressive Features
A Healthy Diet May Help Ward Off Dementia
Posted 3 days ago by Drugs.com
MONDAY, July 17, 2017 – Eating right may help protect your brain health in old age, a group of new studies show, according to four new studies. In particular, the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet lowered people's risk of dementia, two studies concluded. The MIND diet is a hybrid of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets, both of which were originally designed to help improve heart health. Seniors who carefully followed the MIND diet had a 35 percent lower risk of declining brain function as they aged. Even people who halfheartedly adhered to a MIND diet reduced their risk of brain decline between 18 to 24 percent. "We've always been saying that a healthy heart is a healthy brain," said Dean Hartley, director of science initiatives for the Alzheimer's Association. "Your brain uses 20 percent of your ... Read more
Related support groups: Obesity, Weight Loss, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Arteriosclerotic Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Drug-Induced Dementia
One Social Hour a Week Can Help Someone With Dementia
Posted 4 days ago by Drugs.com
SUNDAY, July 16, 2017 – Just a slight increase in social interaction benefits older adults with dementia and lowers health care costs, a new British study suggests. "People with dementia who are living in [nursing] homes are among the most vulnerable in our society," said study leader Clive Ballard. He's a professor at the University of Exeter Medical School in England. "Our outcomes show that good staff training and just one hour a week of social interaction significantly improves quality of life for a group of people who can often be forgotten by society," Ballard said in a university news release. The study included more than 800 dementia patients living in 69 nursing homes in the U.K. Two staff members at each home were trained to engage in simple social activities with the patients. This included talking to them about their interests and decisions about their care. When combined ... Read more
Related support groups: Social Anxiety Disorder, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Arteriosclerotic Dementia, Drug-Induced Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Dementia with Depressive Features
Working Too Much Might Tip Heart Into Irregular Rhythm
Posted 6 days ago by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, July 14, 2017 – Working long hours might do more than exhaust you – it could also raise your risk of a common and potentially dangerous heart rhythm disorder, a new British study finds. "These findings show that long working hours are associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, the most common cardiac arrhythmia," said study leader Mika Kivimaki, a professor of epidemiology at University College London. Because atrial fibrillation has long been a known risk factor for stroke, "this could be one of the mechanisms that explain the previously observed increased risk of stroke among those working long hours," Kivimaki said in a news release from the European Heart Journal. His team published their findings in the journal on July 14. One cardiologist in the United States said that because the study couldn't prove cause-and-effect, its results "need to be interpreted ... Read more
Related support groups: Atrial Fibrillation, Heart Disease, Ischemic Stroke, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Prevention of Thromboembolism in Atrial Fibrillation, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Ischemic Stroke - Prophylaxis, Arteriosclerotic Dementia, Ischemic Heart Disease, Lewy Body Dementia
How Poor Sleep Might Raise Odds for Alzheimer's
Posted 10 days ago by Drugs.com
MONDAY, July 10, 2017 – Researchers may have pinpointed the reason why poor sleep has been linked to a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease. The new study found that just one night of sleep disruption led to an increase in a protein called amyloid beta, while a week of sleep disturbance led to increased levels of a protein called tau. Both proteins are connected with Alzheimer's disease. "We showed that poor sleep is associated with higher levels of two Alzheimer's-associated proteins," said senior author Dr. David Holtzman. He is a professor and head of the department of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine, in St. Louis. "We think that perhaps chronic poor sleep during middle age may increase the risk of Alzheimer's later in life," Holtzman explained in a university news release. More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's, the study authors said. And previous ... Read more
Related support groups: Sleep Disorders, Insomnia, Fatigue, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Shift Work Sleep Disorder, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Diagnosis and Investigation, Jet Lag
Living With Purpose May Help Seniors Sleep Soundly
Posted 10 days ago by Drugs.com
MONDAY, July 10, 2017 – Seniors who believe they have a purpose in life may sleep better, researchers say. Those who have good reasons to get up every day are less apt to have problems that keep them awake at night, such as sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome, according to a new study. People tend to have more trouble sleeping as they age, the researchers added. "Helping people cultivate a purpose in life could be an effective drug-free strategy to improve sleep quality, particularly for a population that is facing more insomnia," said study senior author Jason Ong. He's an associate professor of neurology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. The study included more than 800 people between the ages of 60 and 100 who did not have dementia. Those who said their lives had meaning were 63 percent less likely to have sleep apnea and 52 percent less likely ... Read more
Related support groups: Sleep Disorders, Insomnia, Restless Legs Syndrome, Fatigue, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Sleep Apnea, Periodic Limb Movement Disorder, Shift Work Sleep Disorder, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Obstructive Sleep Apnea/Hypopnea Syndrome
Sleep Problems: An Early Warning Sign of Alzheimer's?
Posted 15 days ago by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, July 5, 2017 – Trouble getting enough sleep may be linked to a bigger risk of Alzheimer's disease for some people, new research suggests. The results of the small study hint that people with a higher-than-normal risk of Alzheimer's disease who had worse sleep quality, more sleep problems and daytime sleepiness had more markers for Alzheimer's disease in their spinal fluid than those who didn't have sleep issues. The markers found by researchers included signs of the proteins amyloid and tau, and brain cell damage and inflammation, all linked to potential Alzheimer's. Amyloid is a protein that folds and forms plaques. Tau is a protein that forms tangles. Plaques and tangles are found in the brains of those with Alzheimer's disease and are considered a hallmark of the disease. "This study and others in the field suggest that sleep may be a modifiable risk factor for ... Read more
Related support groups: Sleep Disorders, Insomnia, Fatigue, Alzheimer's Disease, Sleep Apnea, Obstructive Sleep Apnea/Hypopnea Syndrome, Diagnosis and Investigation
Severe Head Injury May Raise Dementia Risk Years Later
Posted 15 days ago by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, July 5, 2017 – A severe head injury, especially during middle age, could dramatically boost the risk for developing dementia later in life, new research from Finland suggests. The investigation tracked dementia risk among people who had suffered a traumatic brain injury [TBI] at 65 or younger. Ultimately, the researchers determined that not only did the risk go up for those who had a TBI, but the worse the initial head injury, the greater the risk of dementia. "The study showed that 3.5 percent of persons with moderate-to-severe TBI [were] diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease [such as dementia] later in life," said study lead author Dr. Rahul Raj. He's an associate professor of experimental neurosurgery at Helsinki University Hospital. "This is substantially higher compared to age-matched peers with no history of brain injury," he noted. By comparison, "only 1.6 ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Head Injury, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Arteriosclerotic Dementia, Head Injury with Intracranial Hemorrhage, Head Injury w/ Intracranial Hemorrhage and Loss of Consciousness, Lewy Body Dementia, Arteriosclerotic Dementia w/ Depressive Features, Head Injury with Loss of Consciousness, Dementia with Depressive Features
Slowed Walking, Shrinking Brain?
Posted 29 Jun 2017 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, June 29, 2017 – It isn't unusual for older people to slow down a bit as the years go by. But for seniors, slowed walking may signal mental decline, and now a new study suggests why. "Typically when physicians notice a slowing gait in their patients, they'll consider it a mechanical issue and refer the patient to physical therapy," said study author Andrea Rosso. "What we're finding is that physicians also should consider that there may be a brain pathology driving the slowing gait and refer the patient for a cognitive [mental] evaluation," she added. Rosso is an assistant professor in the University of Pittsburgh's department of epidemiology For the study, the researchers looked at 175 people, aged 70 to 79, who had normal mental function at the start of the study period. The participants all had regular assessments over the course of 14 years. People who developed slowed ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Psychiatric Disorders, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Lewy Body Dementia
Could a High IQ Mean a Longer Life?
Posted 29 Jun 2017 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, June 29, 2017 – A high IQ might do more than help you garner good grades: New research suggests it might also lengthen your life. Scottish researchers analyzed data on nearly 66,000 people who were born in that country in 1936, took an IQ test at age 11, and were followed up to age 79 or death. The investigators discovered that children with high IQs were more likely to live longer than their less intelligent peers. Specifically, a higher IQ test score in childhood was associated with a 28 percent reduced risk of death from respiratory disease, a 25 percent lower risk of death from heart disease and a 24 percent reduced risk of death from stroke. But the study didn't prove that high IQ caused this reduced risk, just that an association existed. A higher IQ in childhood was also significantly associated with a lower risk of death from injury, smoking-related cancers ... Read more
Related support groups: Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Cardiovascular Risk Reduction
Popular Heartburn Meds Don't Raise Alzheimer's Risk: Study
Posted 28 Jun 2017 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, June 28, 2017 – Drugs used to treat acid reflux and ulcers don't appear to boost the risk of dementia, as has been previously suspected, new research suggests. The study focused on widely used proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) drugs – medicines such as Prevacid, Prilosec and Nexium. Previous studies have suggested the drugs may increase the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease in people aged 75 and older. PPIs are used to treat digestive problems like reflux disease by reducing the body's production of acid. Researchers from Emory University in Atlanta analyzed a National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center database for the study. The data, compiled from 2005 to 2015, included close to 10,500 Americans, aged 50 or older, with normal brain function or mild thinking difficulties. Eight percent always used PPIs, and 18 percent sometimes did. Users were older than non-users. ... Read more
Related support groups: GERD, Omeprazole, Nexium, Dementia, Prilosec, Pantoprazole, Protonix, Indigestion, Alzheimer's Disease, Stomach Ulcer, Lansoprazole, Dexilant, Prevacid, Barrett's Esophagus, Gastric Ulcer, Duodenitis/Gastritis, Aciphex, Prevpac, Rabeprazole, Esomeprazole
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