Facts about Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia comprising 60 to 80 percent of all dementia cases. The disease is primarily associated with depression and apathy and its common symptoms are sudden disorientation, impaired judgment, significant behavioral changes, confusion, and difficulty in swallowing, speaking and walking.

People with Alzheimer’s disease have been observed to have plaques or deposits of protein fragments in the brain. The symptoms of the disease are also linked to the increasing number of deteriorating and dead nerve cells in the brain.

Despite several researches and special funding from private and government sectors, the root cause of Alzheimer’s disease remains unknown. But medical experts agree that the disease is developed by several factors and not just by a physiological condition. As a person grows older, his risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease rises since the disease is popularly termed as a disease of senility. In Americans, people with Alzheimer’s disease are commonly aged 65 and above. But records also show that people at a younger age can also develop the disease and early diagnosis can be recognized at an early-onset.

The disease may have been thought as a hereditary trait passed on from one family member to another. But studies have shown that genetic markers also comprise 1 percent of Alzheimer’s disease cases in the world. 13 percent of people aged 65 and older have Alzheimer’s disease; this is a total of approximately 5.1 million people suffering from the disease.

It has always been thought that memory loss is a normal part of ageing. But a recent study conducted by the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center had observed otherwise and added that impairments in a person’s cognitive functions can be the signs of dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease in particular.

Memory Loss and Aging

Senility of old age is often associated with memory loss. A person will often (humorously) refer to himself as old every time he experiences difficulty remembering something. But a study had shown that mild memory loss or minor impairment of a person’s cognitive functions can be a sign of something more serious and should not be simply dismissed as due to old age. Dementia is a disease characterized by the decline in cognitive abilities, particularly in remembering. There are several factors that cause dementia; these are conditions and disease that cause brain cells to deteriorate and die. A person would be often considered to be suffering from dementia if he fails to identify and recognize familiar objects, speak coherently and understand language used in different means, and move normally. And the most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease.

The new study conducted by the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center had observed that memory loss is not part of normal aging but are (early) signs of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease in most cases. The study was published in the September 15 issue of Neurology, the official medical online journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The researchers have found out that even the slightest manifestations of weakened cognitive abilities like remembering are caused by brain lesions, and these brain lesions are strongly linked to Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia.

Robert S. Wilson PhD, a neuropsychologist at the Rush University Medical Center, said in their case study that the mildest indication of cognitive changes which are often considered as signs of aging can be the earliest signs of the development of dementia or most commonly, Alzheimer’s disease. He added that the pathological characteristics of a brain with Alzheimer’s disease have greater influence over memory loss than what they have previously observed.

Wilson and his team of researchers studied the cases of 350 nuns, brothers and priests and other participants of Rush’s Religious Order Study. The participants competed up to 13 years of continuous cognitive testing and after their deaths, their brains were examined for the pathological lesions linked to Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. These were cerebral infarction, Lewy bodies and neurofibrillary tangles. The researchers also observed the changes in the participant’s cognitive functions as time passed by. They showed rapid decline in the last 4 to five years of their lives and the following years showed worse impaired cognitive function than what is commonly associated to normal aging.

In a nutshell, the researchers have observed that lesions in the brain and other pathological markers cause the decline in a person’s overall cognition. With this, Wilson said that through the recognition of the earliest changes in cognitive functions like the mildest memory loss, a person can be diagnosed at an early stage. So once treatment is available, the person’s condition can be prevented from developing into progressive dementia.

Tips to Prevent Memory Loss
Alzheimer’s Disease Early Prevention Plan

The recent study shows that brain lesions associated with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia causes memory loss and impairments of other cognitive abilities.  This indicates that the disease is very preventable simply by keeping the brain healthy and by avoiding anything that leads to even the smallest injury to the brain. Keeping the brain healthy is an easy task. All you need to do is eat the right kind of foods with the right amount of nutrients for healthy brain function and by exercising regularly to maintain a healthy blood flow to the brain.

Foods for a Healthy Brain

Columbian researchers have found that proper diet can reduce a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Though there remains to be no cure for the disease due its degenerative and progressive behavior, eating foods with sufficient amounts of nutrients needed by the brain to maintain healthy cognitive function can be effective in preventing the development of the disease.

The researchers studied the eating habits of around 2,150 adults with ages 65 and above for the last four years with the aim of pinpointing the relationship between the disease and diet. They have observed that people who ate more fresh vegetables and fruits, plant oils like olive oils, broccoli, berries and nuts are 40 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Other known sources of brain-boosting nutrients are Omega-3 fatty acids found in krill and fish oil.

People who ate more foods containing saturated fat like red meat, butter and animal organs have higher risk of developing the disease. Though further study is needed to prove the benefits and effects of these foods to the brain, and there’s no 100 percent guarantee that eating foods advised by dietitians to be beneficial to the brain can prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, taking all measures to keep your brain healthy is your best defense against it.

Exercise on a Regular Basis

A person’s health condition is commonly associated to his lifestyle. Several chronic and degenerative diseases can be triggered by different lifestyle markers like unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle and bad habits. Exercise has been proven by different clinical studies to have mitigating effects to the development of diseases. Mild physical exertion improves blood circulation; thus, it promotes the circulation of much needed oxygen into the brain. This action keeps the brain healthy and reduces the risk of developing brain lesions associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

A study conducted by Swedish researchers had found that elderly individuals who exercise on a regular basis have reduced symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. The intensity of the activity showed no significant relevance but variation of movements was observed to improve memory and to reduce memory loss.

Stop Smoking

The direct link of memory loss to smoking has not yet been established, although studies have yielded valuable information regarding it: that non-smokers tend to remember names and faces more than their smoking counterparts.

Since memory loss is associated with deteriorating brain cells, it is no secret that smoking exerts its effects on the blood vessels – mainly by constricting it.  A constricted blood vessel will be deprived of oxygen, and without it, cells will die.  This remains true in the brain as well.  The more brain cells without oxygen, the more brain cells will die.

Sleep your way towards a healthy brain

Never take your night’s sleep for granted.  Sleep is the perfect time for your body to relax and heal itself.  Ideally, six to eight hours of sleep is needed by the body – this is according to research studies conducted. If you have difficulty falling asleep, try to drink warm milk.  The tryptophan in milk is found to make someone feel sleepy.

In order to ensure a good night’s sleep, remember not to take stimulants before bedtime.  Say no to caffeinated food (chocolates) and drinks (soft drinks, coffee, and some types of tea).  Also, do not exercise during night time since this may interfere with your ability to sleep.

Sources
newswise.com
naturalhealthontheweb.com
naturalhealthontheweb.com
alz.org
health.harvard.edu