Posts Tagged ‘Alzheimer’s’

Moderate wine drinking and Alzheimer’s disease – keep taking the Chablis

Posted by admin on August 25th, 2010

Moderate wine drinking could cut people’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers from Boston University Medical Center studied 5,033 men and women from Tromso in northern Norway. The participants had an average age of 58 and were followed over a seven-year period. Women who consumed wine at least four times over a two-week period scored better, on average, on cognitive-function tests than those who drank wine once or less while not drinking was associated with significantly lower cognitive performance. The researchers were able to adjust for the effects of age, education, weight, depression and cardiovascular disease in their study but not for those of diet, income or profession. Over the last 30 years there have been 68 studies into the links between moderate alcohol consumption and cognitive function involving 145,308 participants. Most of these studies have shown an association between light-moderate consumption and better cognitive function and a reduced risk of dementia.

You can find out more about this research by clicking on the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , , , , , , No Comments »

Gum disease and Alzheimer’s disease

Posted by admin on August 5th, 2010

People with gum disease are almost twice as likely to suffer from coronary artery disease as other people and new research suggests they may also be at risk of lower brainpower too. Researchers from New York University studied 152 70-year-old people measuring their IQ and assessing them for periodontal disease. They found that people with gum disease were nine times more likely to score in the lower range of the test compared to people with little or no gum disease. The research follows a 2008 study by the same team in which people with Alzheimer’s were found to have a higher level of antibodies and inflammatory molecules associated with the disease in their bloodstream than healthy people.

You can find out more about this research by clicking on the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , No Comments »

Depression and Alzheimer’s

Posted by admin on August 5th, 2010

People with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) which usually precedes it often have depression as well and some studies suggest that having a history of major depression can double the risk of developing dementia. But it is unclear whether depression is an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease or whether it actually plays a part in causing it. Researchers from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago studied 357 people who were taking part in a long-term study of the risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. Every three years the sample completed a brief questionnaire about their levels of depression and were evaluated to see whether they had Alzheimer’s disease. The study found no change in the level of people’s depression before, during and after their development of Alzheimer’s disease suggesting that it was depression which caused people’s dementia rather than vice versa. The other implication of the research is that depression does not automatically go hand-in-hand with dementia and should be treated just the same in people with Alzheimer’s as those without.

You can find out more about this research by clicking on the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , No Comments »

Education and Alzheimer’s disease

Posted by admin on July 26th, 2010

Having a longer education might not stop people’s brains decaying physically but it can help them to stave off symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. A team of researchers from England and Finland studied the donated brains of 872 people taking part in the Epidemiological Clinicopathological Studies in Europe (ECLIPSE) study. They found that – as was the case with previous studies – people who had been educated longer were less likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s. However, there was no difference in the changes in the brain associated with the condition between well-educated and less well-educated people suggesting that being better educated helps people deal with changes to the brain better rather than preventing them in the first place.

You can find out more about this research by clicking on the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , No Comments »

Resources for Alzheimer’s caregivers

Posted by admin on July 23rd, 2010

Rachel Davis from the radiologydegree.com website has compiled a very useful list of the Top 50 online resources for people looking after someone with Alzheimer’s disease. You can find Rachel’s list here

http://radiologydegree.com/top-50-online-resources-for-families-coping-with-alzheimer%E2%80%99s/

or by clicking on the link in the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , No Comments »

Insulin and Alzheimer’s

Posted by admin on July 16th, 2010

People with Alzheimer’s disease could be helped by squirting insulin up their nose. Insulin is important for communication between brain cells and is needed for brain function but several studies have shown that people with Alzheimer’s have reduced levels of it in their brain. Researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle studied 109 people who had Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment which can develop into the condition; none of the participants had diabetes. A third of the patients received a placebo, a third a lower dose of insulin and a third a higher dose; all the participants used a nebulizer which they squirted up their nose twice a day for four months. The patients who got the lower dose of insulin showed significant improvements in their thinking, memory and ability to do daily activities.

You can find out more about this research by clicking on the link in the title of this post.

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , No Comments »

Vitamin E and Alzheimer’s disease

Posted by admin on July 8th, 2010

There has been a lot of interest in the links between Alzheimer’s disease and diet over the last few years and now a new study from Sweden suggests that vitamin E could have a protective effect against the condition. A team of researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm studied 232 people who were all over 80 at the start of the study – none of the participants had Alzheimer’s at this point. The levels of Vitamin E in the participants’ bloodstreams were measured at the start of the study and they were followed over the next six years in which time 57 of them had developed the condition. The participants with higher blood levels of vitamin E at the start of the study had a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to those with lower levels.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100707102439.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , No Comments »

Occasional tipple might cut Alzheimer’s risk

Posted by admin on May 25th, 2010

A Spanish study by researchers from the University of Valencia has found that a moderate consumption of alcohol could lower the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. The study compared 176 people with Alzheimer’s and 246 healthy people. The participants – or in the case of the people with Alzheimer’s the participants’ relatives – were asked about their lifestyle and the study found that moderate alcohol consumption, particularly in women who did not smoke was associated with a decreased risk of Alzheimer’s. Contrary to previous research the risk of Alzheimer’s was unaffected by the amount of cigarettes people smoked.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7760038/Occasional-drink-may-protect-against-Alzheimers-Disease.html

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , , , No Comments »

How genes affect Alzheimer’s symptoms

Posted by admin on May 19th, 2010

Variations in a gene called APOE are known to affect people’s chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School studied 91 people with Alzheimer’s disease. They found that people with one variation of the gene – the one linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease – performed worse on memory tests and had more abnormalities in the part of the brain that deal with memory. People with the other variation did worse in tests of attention, language and executive function and had more prominent abnormalities in the relevant areas of their brains.

You can find out more about this research at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100517152522.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , , No Comments »

Experts – we know next to nothing about Alzheimer’s

Posted by admin on April 30th, 2010

Over the years – and indeed on this blog – there have been quite a few stories linking different foods, habits and lifestyles to an increased or decreased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. However, a panel of experts set up by the National Institutes of Health in the U.S. has reviewed all the evidence and found that we still know next to nothing about what (beyond getting older) causes it and how we can prevent it. There is a strong association with a gene called ApoE4 but it is a long way from being aware of the link to deriving any practically-useful information from it. There was no evidence of even moderate scientific quality linking dietary supplements, drugs, healthy eating, exercise and a good social life to a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s and in studies that did show an association there was no evidence that it wasn’t being mentally alert that allowed people to maintain a healthy lifestyle rather than vice versa. There was evidence that diabetes, depression and smoking were associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s but nothing to suggest that they were connected.

You can find out more about this report at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100428173342.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

and read the whole thing at

http://consensus.nih.gov/

Posted in Mental Health Tags: , , , , , No Comments »
« Older Entries

Free T-Mobile phones on sale | Thanks to Best Savings Accounts, Conveyancing Fees and Used Cars

Powered by Yahoo! Answers