2 Separate Realities: Talking to a Person With Dementia

According to Caring.com's Gilbert Guide, it is better to redirect or validate a person with dementia than remind him/her that he/she is suffering from dementia.

Redirect away from the issue to something more pleasant. Be warm and open in order to reduce stress and tension.

Validate feelings and emotions. "Accept that your loved one's emotions have more validity than the logic that leads to them"

Those with dementia sometimes experience delusions and/or hallucinations. Their thoughts can be vivid and upsetting so ask simple questions to give them some relief.

Clogged Arteries Interfere with BOTH Heart and Brain Function

You already know clogged arteries contribute to heart disease. But did you know they can also interfere with blood flow to the brain and cause dementia?

Dementia affects nearly 1/3 of those over the age of 80. It includes problems with thinking, reasoning and memory.

Dr. Philip B. Gorelick, director of the center for Stroke Research at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, suggested "that people may be able to reduce the risk of dementia by taking the same steps they would take to lower the risk of heart disease and stroke, including eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight and engaging in physical activity."

Bad For the Heart Equals Bad For the Brain

What's bad for the heart is also bad for the brain. That's what Rachel A. Whitmer's medical research in Oakland, California, has determined.

People who heavily smoke in midlife are at double the risk of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia than their contemporaries.

Over 25% of the 21,123 ethnically diverse 50-60 year olds tested over a period of 23 years were diagnosed with dementia. Those who smoked more than 2 packs of cigarettes a day in midlife had a 157% increased risk of developing Alzheimer's and a 172% increased risk of developing vascular dementia (caused by damage to the arteries in the brain).

Blot Clots In Relation to Alzheimer's Disease

Signs that a stroke has occurred are often found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. And there is new evidence that these blood clots such as these may play a significant role in Alzheimer's Disease--causing poor blood flow to the brain.

The protein fragment that plays a defining role in Alzheimer's, beta-amyloid, can stimulate the formation of resilient blood clots. Using mice, researchers found that anti-clotting drugs improved memory. The downside is that anticoagulants carry a risk of hemorrhage.

Beta-amyloid accumulates in the blood vessels that feed the brain, cutting off the brain's blood supply.

It is hoped that researchers will be able "to develop drugs that are capable of safely improving cerebrall blood flow and staving off dementia in Alzheimer's disease."

Neuron, June 10, 2010

What You Can Do To Decrease Your Risk For Dementia

In an article by Robert Preidt for MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, a new study has shown that "it may be possible to lower the incidence of dementia by reducing rates of diabetes and depression, boosting education, and increasing fruit and vegetable consumption."

The exact cause of dementia is still unknown but scientists in the study believe that their are greater risks when you have a history of depression, a diet rich in sugar, alcohol consumption, tobacco use, less of an education and vascular problems. The study of 1,433 healthy people over 65 living in the south of France showed that reducing or eliminating any of the above significantly reduced their chances of contracting dementia.

Eliminating depression decreased your risk by 10%. Increasing education improved your odds of having dementia by 18%.

PTSD and Cognitive Impairment

After physicians studied 10,481 veterans 65 and older, it was reported in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society on September 2, 2010 that people with post-traumatic stress disorder are at significantly greater risk for cognitive impairment (dementia) than their peers who had combat injuries but no stress disorder.

New studies will hopefully show whether the risk of dementia can be reduced by effectively treating PTSD.

"Confirmation of a causal link between PTSD and cognitive impairment in late life would have enormous global implication in a world facing a rising societal burden of dementia, a shrinking workforce to sustain its economies, and the difficulties of containing human violence," according to Dr. Soo Borson of the University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle. Moreover, "Soldiers and other U.S. war veterans are just one of many groups exposed to deeply traumatizing experiences with lifetime effect."

Source: MedlinePlus, health information from the National Library of Medicine

For more on PTSD and Mild Cognitive Impairment, visit 50somethinginfo.com