Minding Our Elders®

Exercise May Help Slow Physical Decline in Alzheimer’s

Like it or not, exercise is good for us. Exercise helps to speed up our metabolism and strengthen our bones. Also, we’ve known for decades that exercise is good for the heart, and lately there have been many studies that have shown it’s good for the brain. So good, as a matter of fact, that now, according to a recent paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, Researchers at Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan concluded exercise is something we can do right now to help prevent Alzheimer's disease.

Read more about exercise and how it slows physical decline in Alzheimer's:

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Loneliness May Increase Dementia Risk, Heart Attacks and Stroke

A recent study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry has found that people who feel lonely are significantly more at risk for developing dementia. The study, headed by Tjalling Jan Holwerda of the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, found that participants who reported feeling lonely, no matter how many friends and family surrounded them, were more likely to experience dementia than those who didn’t feel lonely. The team focused on approximately 2,200 older adults living in Amsterdam, ages 65 to 86. None of the participants exhibited signs of dementia and none of them lived in facilities such as nursing homes.

Read more about loneliness and dementia:

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BRAIN Initiative Embraces More Than Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is not only devastating those who develop the disease. It affects the family and others who love the person who must live with the disease, and it affects our nation as a whole because of the high cost of care. 

According to research led by an economist at the RAND Corporation, expenses for dementia, including nursing home care, were $109 billion in 2010. To put that into perspective, heart disease costs totaled $102 billion and cancer totaled $77 billion. The amount of money spent on heart disease and cancer is enormous, however through preventive intervention, early diagnosis and better drugs, the number of people developing these diseases are holding steady or even decreasing. Not so with Alzheimer’s disease.

Read more about brain mapping and its potential:

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Researchers Isolate Olive Oil Component That Protects Against Alzheimer’s

The Mediterranean diet is widely recommended by health professionals as a way to promote heart health as well as for possible Alzheimer’s protection. For most people, the fish, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and olive oil-based salad dressings that make up the bulk of a Mediterranean diet are excellent foods for general health. However, the liberal use of extra virgin olive oil used for cooking and as flavoring for bread and salads may be the real key to why the Mediterranean diet is considered protective against Alzheimer’s.

Read more about the isolated component of olive oil that may prevent Alzheimer's:

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Aspirin May Protect Our Brain As Well As Our Heart

Old fashioned aspirin is once again looking like a hero. More studies are reporting that people who have taken a low dose aspirin tablet daily, which is common practice in the U.S. to prevent heart attacks, are also receiving some protection from dementia. According to a study conducted at the University of Gothenburg in Mölndal, Sweden, women who took a low dose of aspirin over a 5 year period were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.  This is not the first study to suggest that aspirin may be effective in combating the onset of Alzheimer's, but it adds to the body of favorable data.

Read more about how aspirin may protect us against Alzheimer's:

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Studies Suggest Aging Eyes Could Play Role In a Many Diseases

A recent story in the New York Times reports on new information suggesting that many problems we face as we age, including memory loss, insomnia, depression – even cancer – could be caused by changes in our eyes.  Many of us become aware of vision changes in our early to mid-40s, when we find, as my mother used to say, that “the print in the newspaper keeps getting smaller.” What’s happening, of course, is presbyopia. As the eye ages, the lens of the eye gradually loses its ability to focus on close objects, thus the prevalence of reading glasses in our mid-years.

Read more about having eyes tested as we age to spot possible disease:

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Vitamin D, Mediterranean Diet Help Lower Risk of Alzheimer’s

Two different studies have highlighted natural weapons we may have at our disposal in our fight against developing Alzheimer’s disease. One is Vitamin D and the other is our diet.  We’ve long known that vitamin D, generally absorbed through sun exposure but often supplemented, is necessary for bone strength. During the last few years, evidence has been accumulating showing that a low level of vitamin D likely contributes to cardiovascular disease, some cancers, strokes, depression and some metabolic disorders. Now, a review recently published in the journal Neurology, assessed 37 studies that evaluated vitamin D concentrations and cognitive function.

Read more about vitamin D and the Mediterranean diet as tools to avoid Alzheimers:

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Green Tea, Grape Skin Extracts May Interrupt Alzheimer's Path

Green tea and red wine have both been shown in numerous studies to contain antioxidants thought to increase overall health and possibly prevent some diseases. Now, a recent study, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, has shown that purified extracts from green tea and red wine (specifically, the resveratrol in the red grape skins) have been shown in early animal studies to interrupt the pathway that may lead to Alzheimer’s disease.

Read more about green tea and wine as a possible way to prevent Alzheimer's:

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Study Says Exercise Key to Preventing Alzheimer's

Study Says Exercise Key to Preventing Alzheimer’s

A recent paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry reported on some encouraging results about the benefits of exercise. Researchers at Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan concluded exercise is something we can do right now to help prevent Alzheimer's disease. While the study was done on mice, the researchers feel strongly that people will show similar results.

Read more about preventing Alzheimer's through exercise:

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Administration on Aging programs provide assistance for caregivers nationwide

Nearly any family caregiver has felt isolated and alone at one time or another. For many, that feeling is chronic. Friends don’t understand the strain we are under. Some people get no support from their extended family or friends. Where can we turn when there seems to be nowhere to turn? Believe it or not, many resources are at your fingertips on the Administration on Aging website.

Read about the valuable resources on the AoA website:

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Memantine May Help Prevent Damage from Mini-Strokes

Unlike Alzheimer’s disease which is still poorly understood, it’s well accepted that vascular dementia is caused by strokes, often a series of small, “silent” strokes. While early stage Alzheimer’s is characterized mostly by memory loss, vascular dementia more generally affects executive function, multi-tasking, problem-solving and reasoning. It’s important to understand that more than one type of dementia can be present, which can further complicate a diagnosis.

When people are having a major stroke, they are likely to be aware that something is happening that could cause significant damage unless immediate medical intervention is sought. However, the undiagnosed mini-strokes that can result in mild cognitive impairment leading to vascular dementia often occur without any immediate evidence that something is wrong.

Read more about Memantine and vascular dementia:

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Loneliness May Increase Dementia, Heart Attack and Stroke Risk

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Loneliness May Increase Dementia, Heart Attack and Stroke Risk

A recent study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry has found that people who feel lonely are significantly more at risk for developing dementia.

The study, headed by Tjalling Jan Holwerda of the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, found that participants who reported feeling lonely, no matter how many friends and family surrounded them, were more likely to experience dementia than those who lived on their own, but didn’t feel lonely. The team focused on approximately 2,200 older adults living in Amsterdam, ages 65 to 86. None of the participants exhibited signs of dementia and none of them lived in facilities such as nursing homes. The researchers visited the elders two times over the course of three years. About half of them lived alone, with 20 percent reporting feelings of loneliness.

Read more about lonliness and dementia, heart attack and stroke risk:

Purchase Minding Our Elders: Caregivers Share Their Personal Stories – paperback or ebook

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