November Is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month

Right now, there are more than 55 million people suffering from dementia globally (World Health Organization). As people continue to live longer, the incidence of dementia is only expected to increase, reaching 139 million by 2050 (Alzheimer’s Disease International). Seeing these statistics can be alarming. But by educating yourself on known causes and prevention strategies, you’ll be better prepared if dementia ever touches your life or the ones you care for.

What is Dementia?

Dementia is a catch all term for neurocognitive disorders that affect the brain. The specific diagnosis and the accompanying symptoms may not look the same from person to person. However, the most common symptoms include memory loss, challenges communicating, impaired visual and spatial awareness, trouble with basic problem solving, coordination issues, and confusion. Dementia can also impact mental health, resulting in personality changes, depression, heightened anxiety, and even hallucination.

It’s important to note that there are major and mild cases of dementia, based on the degree that the symptoms impact a person’s ability to function independently. For years before severe symptoms occur, individuals might not experience any significant life impacts.

Causes

As broad as the symptoms can be, so too is the range of causes. Dementia is most prevalent in people over 65, but it is not a natural part of aging. While the details vary, causes for dementia usually include some form of neural cell damage. Some causes include:

• Alzheimer’s disease – the most prevalent form of dementia. While the exact cause is unknown, amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain are usually present.
• Vascular cognitive impairment  – damage to the brain from impaired blood flow
• Dementia with Lewy bodies – abnormal protein deposits develop inside neurons
• Frontotemporal dementia – cell damage found in specific brain areas
• Huntington’s disease – genetic disorder from a defect on chromosome 4
• Traumatic brain injury – studies have shown brain injuries increase dementia risk

Prevention

Scientists have been making significant headway understanding the brain in the last decade; an enormous body of research has been developed to comprehend diseases like Alzheimer’s and dementia and to create new treatments. While this hasn’t resulted in any cures yet, drugs have been developed to manage symptoms, and our understanding of what can lead to dementia has greatly improved.

There are controllable and uncontrollable risks for developing dementia. While age, race, genes, and gender play a role, researchers are suggesting that healthy lifestyle choices like diet, exercise, and activities that stimulate the brain may reduce the risk. Take a look at this blog post for some helpful prevention tips.

With neurocognitive diseases on the rise, we hope we’ve helped spread awareness and education this Alzheimer’s awareness month.