Healthnotes:Newswire
By Suzanne Dixon, MPH, MS, RD
Healthnotes Newswire (March 12, 2009)—Anyone who’s cared for a loved one with dementia understands the agony of watching a clear mind slip away. But new research on this topic brings new hope: A healthy Mediterranean diet may not only prevent the beginning stages of dementia, known as mild cognitive impairment, but in people already experiencing mild cognitive impairment, it may also reduce the risk of developing full-blown dementia.
Fresh food, fish, & fat—three keys to staying sharp
Researchers assessed the eating habits of 1,875 men and women, 482 of whom were classified as having mild cognitive impairment at the start of the study. To determine how closely each person followed a typical Mediterranean eating pattern, researchers looked at eight food categories: dairy, meat, fruits, vegetables, legumes (beans), cereals, fish, and fat.
Eating more dairy and meat was classified as not following a Mediterranean diet and bad for health. Eating more fruits, vegetables, legumes, cereals, fish, and monounsaturated fat, particularly in olive oil, was classified as more closely following a Mediterranean diet and protective of good health.
Study participants were 77 years old, on average, and were classified into groups with low, medium, or high levels of adherence to a Mediterranean diet, depending on how much or how little of each of the eight food categories they typically ate.
After following the group for approximately four and a half years, the researchers found that people in the high Mediterranean diet group had 28% lower risk of developing mild cognitive impairment than people in the low Mediterranean diet group. Among those with mild cognitive impairment at the beginning of the study, those in the medium and high Mediterranean diet groups had 45% and 48% lower risk, respectively, of developing full-blown dementia or Alzheimer’s disease compared with those in the low Mediterranean diet group.
In summary, the less meat and dairy, and the more fruits, vegetables, legumes, cereals, fish, and olive oil a person ate, the less likely he or she was to develop mild cognitive impairment or dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Healthy choices for a healthy brain
Use the following diet tips to........read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
20 tips to help ward off dementia
earlier.
By Linda Shrieves
The Orlando Sentin
Timing is everything, comedians say.
It's also important when it comes to taking care of your brain. Yet most of us start worrying about dementia after retirement — and that may be too little, too late.
Experts say that if you really want to ward off dementia, you need to start taking care of your bean in your 30s and 40s — or even earlier.
"More and more research is suggesting that lifestyle is very important to your brain's health," says Dr. Paul Nussbaum, a neuropsychologist and an adjunct associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "If you want to live a long, healthy life, then many of us need to start as early as we can."
So what can you do to beef up your brain — and possibly ward off dementia? Nussbaum, who recently gave a speech on the topic for the Winter Park (Fla.) Health Foundation, offers 20 tips that may help.
1. Join clubs or organizations that need volunteers. If you start volunteering now, you won't feel lost and unneeded after you retire.
2. Develop a hobby or two. Hobbies help you develop a robust brain because you're trying something new and complex.
3. Practice writing with your nondominant hand several minutes every day. This will exercise the opposite side of your brain and fire up those neurons.
4. Take dance lessons. In a study of nearly 500 people, dancing was the only regular physical activity associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease. The people who danced three or four times a week showed 76 percent less incidence of dementia than those who danced only once a week or not at all.
5. Need a hobby? Start gardening. Researchers in New Zealand found that, of 1,000 people, those who gardened regularly were less likely to suffer from.... read the whle story and a comment
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
By Linda Shrieves
The Orlando Sentin
Timing is everything, comedians say.
It's also important when it comes to taking care of your brain. Yet most of us start worrying about dementia after retirement — and that may be too little, too late.
Experts say that if you really want to ward off dementia, you need to start taking care of your bean in your 30s and 40s — or even earlier.
"More and more research is suggesting that lifestyle is very important to your brain's health," says Dr. Paul Nussbaum, a neuropsychologist and an adjunct associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "If you want to live a long, healthy life, then many of us need to start as early as we can."
So what can you do to beef up your brain — and possibly ward off dementia? Nussbaum, who recently gave a speech on the topic for the Winter Park (Fla.) Health Foundation, offers 20 tips that may help.
1. Join clubs or organizations that need volunteers. If you start volunteering now, you won't feel lost and unneeded after you retire.
2. Develop a hobby or two. Hobbies help you develop a robust brain because you're trying something new and complex.
3. Practice writing with your nondominant hand several minutes every day. This will exercise the opposite side of your brain and fire up those neurons.
4. Take dance lessons. In a study of nearly 500 people, dancing was the only regular physical activity associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease. The people who danced three or four times a week showed 76 percent less incidence of dementia than those who danced only once a week or not at all.
5. Need a hobby? Start gardening. Researchers in New Zealand found that, of 1,000 people, those who gardened regularly were less likely to suffer from.... read the whle story and a comment
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Alzheimer's on a relentless upward trajectory
USA Today
By Mary Brophy Marcus, USA TODAY
The number of people who have Alzheimer's disease is creeping insidiously higher year after year, adding increasing pressure on the health care system, experts say.
A report out today, the 2009 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, indicates that an estimated 5.1 million Americans over 65 now have Alzheimer's
Health care costs for them and for people who have other forms of dementia are more than three times higher than costs for older Americans who are not afflicted.
"We're really going to have to do a better job of dealing with Alzheimer's disease. We're going to have to find better treatments and preventions," says Bill Thies, chief medical and scientific officer of the Alzheimer's Association, which compiled the report. "But we're seeing the government reducing dollars for Alzheimer's disease. Clearly, that's an equation going in the wrong direction."
Because there is no.......read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
By Mary Brophy Marcus, USA TODAY
The number of people who have Alzheimer's disease is creeping insidiously higher year after year, adding increasing pressure on the health care system, experts say.
A report out today, the 2009 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, indicates that an estimated 5.1 million Americans over 65 now have Alzheimer's
Health care costs for them and for people who have other forms of dementia are more than three times higher than costs for older Americans who are not afflicted.
"We're really going to have to do a better job of dealing with Alzheimer's disease. We're going to have to find better treatments and preventions," says Bill Thies, chief medical and scientific officer of the Alzheimer's Association, which compiled the report. "But we're seeing the government reducing dollars for Alzheimer's disease. Clearly, that's an equation going in the wrong direction."
Because there is no.......read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Boost Your Memory with Brain-Boosting Supplements
NaturalNews.com
by: James J. Gormley, citizen journalist
(NaturalNews) Where did I leave my keys? Who am I supposed to call again? What did I mean by that scribbled note, anyway? Everybody experiences these incidents of forgetfulness.
As we get older, these kinds of memory lapses can become routine, and are casually attributed to "advancing years" by many baby boomers, according to Dr. Heidi White, assistant professor of geriatric medicine at Duke University Medical Center.
Age isn`t the only factor in memory loss, however, says White. She notes that among possible causes for cognitive decline are medications (such as sedatives, which can dull the mind), depression (which affects concentration), and hearing or vision impairment.
Baby boomers and the battle for the mind
Keeping the brain healthy much longer is a goal of many of us, especially people who, as of this writing, were 45 to 63 years old - otherwise called baby boomers. If you consider that a baby boomer turns 50 every 7.5 seconds, by the year 2024 there will be 115 million people over age 50 in the U.S.
Today, approximately 78 million people, about 26 percent of the total U.S. population, were not only born between 1946 and 1964 but are, say demographers and researchers, greatly concerned about loss of memory and the aging of the mind.
True failing memory is different from the forgetfulness of a busy person or the stereotypical absentminded professor. Clinically speaking, failing memory is often accompanied by a person`s declining sense of well-being, and is often described by symptoms such as a lack of mental clarity (brain fog), altered mood (as in depression), decreased mental abilities, worsening sleep patterns, and declining overall energy.
Age of Information Overload
Whence the brain drain? Some researchers believe our brains are overtaxed today. Not many would disagree that we`ve moved beyond the Information Age into the "Age of Information Overload." It`s believed that our cognitive processing, and maybe even our memory storage capacity itself, can become overburdened as we age.
To one extent or another, there`s little doubt that all of us are bombarded by work and personal e-mail, Internet spam and junk mail, faxes, magazines, 24-hour news, digital pages, telemarketer calls, cell phone voice-mail and even the arcane logistics of play-date scheduling for the kids after school!
Cognition is sensitive to a wide variety of..........read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
by: James J. Gormley, citizen journalist
(NaturalNews) Where did I leave my keys? Who am I supposed to call again? What did I mean by that scribbled note, anyway? Everybody experiences these incidents of forgetfulness.
As we get older, these kinds of memory lapses can become routine, and are casually attributed to "advancing years" by many baby boomers, according to Dr. Heidi White, assistant professor of geriatric medicine at Duke University Medical Center.
Age isn`t the only factor in memory loss, however, says White. She notes that among possible causes for cognitive decline are medications (such as sedatives, which can dull the mind), depression (which affects concentration), and hearing or vision impairment.
Baby boomers and the battle for the mind
Keeping the brain healthy much longer is a goal of many of us, especially people who, as of this writing, were 45 to 63 years old - otherwise called baby boomers. If you consider that a baby boomer turns 50 every 7.5 seconds, by the year 2024 there will be 115 million people over age 50 in the U.S.
Today, approximately 78 million people, about 26 percent of the total U.S. population, were not only born between 1946 and 1964 but are, say demographers and researchers, greatly concerned about loss of memory and the aging of the mind.
True failing memory is different from the forgetfulness of a busy person or the stereotypical absentminded professor. Clinically speaking, failing memory is often accompanied by a person`s declining sense of well-being, and is often described by symptoms such as a lack of mental clarity (brain fog), altered mood (as in depression), decreased mental abilities, worsening sleep patterns, and declining overall energy.
Age of Information Overload
Whence the brain drain? Some researchers believe our brains are overtaxed today. Not many would disagree that we`ve moved beyond the Information Age into the "Age of Information Overload." It`s believed that our cognitive processing, and maybe even our memory storage capacity itself, can become overburdened as we age.
To one extent or another, there`s little doubt that all of us are bombarded by work and personal e-mail, Internet spam and junk mail, faxes, magazines, 24-hour news, digital pages, telemarketer calls, cell phone voice-mail and even the arcane logistics of play-date scheduling for the kids after school!
Cognition is sensitive to a wide variety of..........read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Do You Really Want That Alzheimer's Test?
Forbes
By Lisa LaMotta
Scientists are working hard to develop a new test for Alzheimer's disease. But once they have such a diagnostic, will there be any reason to use it outside of clinical trials?
"What do you do with these people once you diagnose them -- apart from frighten them?" asks Mark Smith, a professor at Case Western Reserve University who has been an influential thinker when it comes to the disease.
Five million people in the United States suffer from the crippling neurological disease. This week, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania said they have developed a test that uses levels of certain proteins in spinal fluid, combined with the presence or absence of mutations in a particular gene, to predict who will get Alzheimer's.
Looking at all those different factors appears to pinpoint people who will....read the whole article
For dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
By Lisa LaMotta
Scientists are working hard to develop a new test for Alzheimer's disease. But once they have such a diagnostic, will there be any reason to use it outside of clinical trials?
"What do you do with these people once you diagnose them -- apart from frighten them?" asks Mark Smith, a professor at Case Western Reserve University who has been an influential thinker when it comes to the disease.
Five million people in the United States suffer from the crippling neurological disease. This week, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania said they have developed a test that uses levels of certain proteins in spinal fluid, combined with the presence or absence of mutations in a particular gene, to predict who will get Alzheimer's.
Looking at all those different factors appears to pinpoint people who will....read the whole article
For dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Friday, March 20, 2009
Workaholics Risk Dementia, Study Finds
BBC News
Long working hours may raise the risk of mental decline and possibly dementia, research suggests.
The Finnish-led study was based on analysis of 2,214 middle-aged British civil servants.
It found that those working more than 55 hours a week had poorer mental skills than those who worked a standard working week.
The American Journal of Epidemiology study found hard workers had problems with short-term memory and word recall.
This should say to employers that insisting people work long hours is actually not good for your business
Professor Cary Cooper
University of Lancaster
Lead researcher Dr Marianna Virtanen, from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, said: "The disadvantages of overtime work should be taken seriously."
It is not known why working long hours might have an adverse effect on the brain.
However, the researchers say key factors could include..............read more
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Long working hours may raise the risk of mental decline and possibly dementia, research suggests.
The Finnish-led study was based on analysis of 2,214 middle-aged British civil servants.
It found that those working more than 55 hours a week had poorer mental skills than those who worked a standard working week.
The American Journal of Epidemiology study found hard workers had problems with short-term memory and word recall.
This should say to employers that insisting people work long hours is actually not good for your business
Professor Cary Cooper
University of Lancaster
Lead researcher Dr Marianna Virtanen, from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, said: "The disadvantages of overtime work should be taken seriously."
It is not known why working long hours might have an adverse effect on the brain.
However, the researchers say key factors could include..............read more
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
New Light On Longstanding Medical Mystery That May Link Cardiovascular Disease, Osteoporosis And Perhaps Even Alzheimer's Disease
ScienceDaily — A research project at Rice University has brought scientists to the brink of comprehending a long-standing medical mystery that may link cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and perhaps even Alzheimer's disease. And for that, we can thank the rat.
The recent paper in Artery Research by Rice evolutionary biologist Michael Kohn and his team reports they have found that common rats with a genetic mutation have developed a resistance to rat poison, aka warfarin. That's good news for the rats, but it comes at a price. The mutation also leaves them susceptible to ....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
The recent paper in Artery Research by Rice evolutionary biologist Michael Kohn and his team reports they have found that common rats with a genetic mutation have developed a resistance to rat poison, aka warfarin. That's good news for the rats, but it comes at a price. The mutation also leaves them susceptible to ....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Doubts over claims of doctor who 'can reverse' Alzheimer's
Mail Online
A doctor who claimed to be able to reverse the effects of Alzheimer's with an arthritis drug was disciplined last year by US health chiefs for claiming the same drug could halt back pain.
Sensational footage of Dr Edward Tobinick injecting a dementia patient who subsequently appeared to recognise his wife for the first time in five years was shown in Britain earlier this month.
It gave new hope to the 700,000 UK dementia sufferers
But The Mail on Sunday has learned Dr Tobinick, 56, has previously made similar claims that the same drug, ,, could cure chronic back and neck pain.
He also has a financial interest in the success of the drug because he owns shares in its manufacturer, Amgen.
Last year Dr Tobinick was disciplined by the Medical Board of California (MBC) after claims that he failed to provide scientific evidence that etanercept was a 'breakthrough' treatment for back pain.
After accusations of unprofessional conduct he agreed to go on probation for a year. A ban from practising for 60 days was suspended for the period of his probation.
Last year another study suggested.....read the whole story
For useful dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
A doctor who claimed to be able to reverse the effects of Alzheimer's with an arthritis drug was disciplined last year by US health chiefs for claiming the same drug could halt back pain.
Sensational footage of Dr Edward Tobinick injecting a dementia patient who subsequently appeared to recognise his wife for the first time in five years was shown in Britain earlier this month.
It gave new hope to the 700,000 UK dementia sufferers
But The Mail on Sunday has learned Dr Tobinick, 56, has previously made similar claims that the same drug, ,, could cure chronic back and neck pain.
He also has a financial interest in the success of the drug because he owns shares in its manufacturer, Amgen.
Last year Dr Tobinick was disciplined by the Medical Board of California (MBC) after claims that he failed to provide scientific evidence that etanercept was a 'breakthrough' treatment for back pain.
After accusations of unprofessional conduct he agreed to go on probation for a year. A ban from practising for 60 days was suspended for the period of his probation.
Last year another study suggested.....read the whole story
For useful dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Friday, March 13, 2009
Prana's Progress Inhibits Alzheimer's Damage
Alzheimer's and Dementia Weekly
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - Prana Biotechnology Limited, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the research and development of treatments for neurodegenerative disorders, today announced that PBT2 has demonstrated safety and tolerability and reduced Abeta 42, in a Phase IIa study of PBT2 in patients with early Alzheimer's Disease. PBT2 also improved Executive Function performance in select cognitive tests.
"This is a very exciting and important milestone for the company, particularly because PBT2, a drug known to inhibit the toxic oligomers of Abeta that cause the functional damage in Alzheimer's Disease, was able to show such a clear effect in a short trial," commented Geoffrey Kempler, Prana's Chairman and CEO.
In this double blind multi-centre clinical trial, 78 patients in Sweden and Australia were randomized to receive either a placebo, PBT2 50mg or PBT2 250mg capsule once per day for 12 weeks.
Analysis of the trial data demonstrated that the....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - Prana Biotechnology Limited, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the research and development of treatments for neurodegenerative disorders, today announced that PBT2 has demonstrated safety and tolerability and reduced Abeta 42, in a Phase IIa study of PBT2 in patients with early Alzheimer's Disease. PBT2 also improved Executive Function performance in select cognitive tests.
"This is a very exciting and important milestone for the company, particularly because PBT2, a drug known to inhibit the toxic oligomers of Abeta that cause the functional damage in Alzheimer's Disease, was able to show such a clear effect in a short trial," commented Geoffrey Kempler, Prana's Chairman and CEO.
In this double blind multi-centre clinical trial, 78 patients in Sweden and Australia were randomized to receive either a placebo, PBT2 50mg or PBT2 250mg capsule once per day for 12 weeks.
Analysis of the trial data demonstrated that the....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Research on new treatments for Alzheimer's under way in Jenkintown
Times Chronicle
Glenside News
By: Linda Finarelli
Advanced medical research that may lead to breakthroughs in the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease is being carried out by a husband-and-wife team in Jenkintown.
By using "tracer" chemicals that bond to markers for specific diseases and high-tech scanners that produce 3-D images, the Adler Institute for Advanced Imaging is able to more accurately pinpoint cancerous tumors in patients. That same technology may someday be able to illuminate the plaque in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease and determine the impact of a drug to arrest the disease, according to Dr. Lee Adler, the medical director and founder of the advanced imaging institute.
Alzheimer's, a progressive and eventually fatal brain disease, is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, where approximately 5.2 million people now suffer from it, according to the Alzheimer's Association Web site www.alz.org. An estimated 10 million baby boomers are expected to develop Alzheimer's in their lifetime, amounting to 7.7 million Americans with the disease by 2030 and 11 million to 15 million by 2050.
The Adler Institute has the only fixed PET/CT (positron emissions tomography and computed tomography) scanner in Eastern Montgomery County, said Adler, a pioneer in PET, PET/CT and 3-D coronary artery imaging and former chief of nuclear medicine at Fox Chase Cancer Center. Comparing the technology to a satellite view of weather patterns imposed on a map of the United States to show where storms will occur, Adler said the CT image - a precise display of the body's anatomy - is combined with the PET image that shows abnormal activity to allow doctors to see exactly where, for example, a tumor is located in the body.
The advantage.....read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Glenside News
By: Linda Finarelli
Advanced medical research that may lead to breakthroughs in the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease is being carried out by a husband-and-wife team in Jenkintown.
By using "tracer" chemicals that bond to markers for specific diseases and high-tech scanners that produce 3-D images, the Adler Institute for Advanced Imaging is able to more accurately pinpoint cancerous tumors in patients. That same technology may someday be able to illuminate the plaque in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease and determine the impact of a drug to arrest the disease, according to Dr. Lee Adler, the medical director and founder of the advanced imaging institute.
Alzheimer's, a progressive and eventually fatal brain disease, is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, where approximately 5.2 million people now suffer from it, according to the Alzheimer's Association Web site www.alz.org. An estimated 10 million baby boomers are expected to develop Alzheimer's in their lifetime, amounting to 7.7 million Americans with the disease by 2030 and 11 million to 15 million by 2050.
The Adler Institute has the only fixed PET/CT (positron emissions tomography and computed tomography) scanner in Eastern Montgomery County, said Adler, a pioneer in PET, PET/CT and 3-D coronary artery imaging and former chief of nuclear medicine at Fox Chase Cancer Center. Comparing the technology to a satellite view of weather patterns imposed on a map of the United States to show where storms will occur, Adler said the CT image - a precise display of the body's anatomy - is combined with the PET image that shows abnormal activity to allow doctors to see exactly where, for example, a tumor is located in the body.
The advantage.....read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
"It was like a vacuum cleaner had removed the plaques."
Alzheimer's and Dementia Weekly
New Haven, Conn. — Blocking a common immune system response cleared up plaques associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and enabled treated mice to recover some lost memory, Yale University researchers reported in the journal Nature Medicine.
Researchers hope the new approach may one day overcome one of the biggest obstacles to development of new dementia medications – the difficulty in finding drugs that can safely cross the blood-brain barrier.
The results of the research surprised the scientists working in the lab of Richard Flavell, senior author of the...read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
New Haven, Conn. — Blocking a common immune system response cleared up plaques associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and enabled treated mice to recover some lost memory, Yale University researchers reported in the journal Nature Medicine.
Researchers hope the new approach may one day overcome one of the biggest obstacles to development of new dementia medications – the difficulty in finding drugs that can safely cross the blood-brain barrier.
The results of the research surprised the scientists working in the lab of Richard Flavell, senior author of the...read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Monday, March 9, 2009
Insight Into Ways Organ Systems Outside The Brain May Affect Alzheimer's Disease
ScienceDaily - In Alzheimer's disease the brain accumulates a molecule called A-beta that can be quite toxic to brain cells. Many researchers believe that finding ways to clear A-beta may be a key to treatment or prevention of Alzheimer's disease.
A new study provides new insights into the way A-beta in the peripheral blood stream affects A-beta clearance in the brain. Scientists from the University of Washington in Seattle, VA Puget Sound Health Care System, and the University of Hong Kong found that when circulating A-beta levels in the blood stream of rats were elevated, known amounts of radioactively tagged A-beta were swept from the brain more slowly.
These findings directly demonstrate something......read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
A new study provides new insights into the way A-beta in the peripheral blood stream affects A-beta clearance in the brain. Scientists from the University of Washington in Seattle, VA Puget Sound Health Care System, and the University of Hong Kong found that when circulating A-beta levels in the blood stream of rats were elevated, known amounts of radioactively tagged A-beta were swept from the brain more slowly.
These findings directly demonstrate something......read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Friday, March 6, 2009
Virtual Dementia Tour
CBS
She's given goggles that impair sight... headphones that give off distracting noises... a pair of gloves with popcorn kernels in the finger tips to simulate arthritis... then more kernels are placed in her shoes. To finish it off, sister stella tapes some of her fingers together for limited dexterity.
Amy Kennedy is now ready to take the virtual dementia tour...an experience designed to give perfectly healthy individuals a chance to see what day to day life would be like if they suffered from alzheimer's or dementia. She admits, "You can do all that dementia training, i've had every dementia training there is, but making yourself go through it is a lot different than hearing it in a classroom."
But the tour is much more than just a crazy outfit. Once you're garbed up, you're taken into the testing room, which is designed to look like a residence room. Then, you're given 5 simple, everyday tasks to do... sounds easy, right? Turn's out, it.....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
She's given goggles that impair sight... headphones that give off distracting noises... a pair of gloves with popcorn kernels in the finger tips to simulate arthritis... then more kernels are placed in her shoes. To finish it off, sister stella tapes some of her fingers together for limited dexterity.
Amy Kennedy is now ready to take the virtual dementia tour...an experience designed to give perfectly healthy individuals a chance to see what day to day life would be like if they suffered from alzheimer's or dementia. She admits, "You can do all that dementia training, i've had every dementia training there is, but making yourself go through it is a lot different than hearing it in a classroom."
But the tour is much more than just a crazy outfit. Once you're garbed up, you're taken into the testing room, which is designed to look like a residence room. Then, you're given 5 simple, everyday tasks to do... sounds easy, right? Turn's out, it.....read the whole story
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Study suggests how Alzheimer's attacks brain
Stuff.conz
US scientists proposed a new theory of how Alzheimer's disease kills brain cells they said opens new avenues of research into treatments for the fatal, brain-wasting disease.
They believe a chemical mechanism that naturally prunes away unwanted brain cells during early brain development somehow gets hijacked in Alzheimer's disease.
"The key player we're focusing on is a protein called APP," said Marc Tessier-Lavigne, executive vice president of research drug discovery at the US biotechnology company Genentech Inc , whose study appears in the journal Nature.
Tessier-Lavigne said amyloid precursor protein, or APP -- a key building block in brain plaques found in Alzheimer's disease -- is the driving force behind this process.
"We know that APP is...read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
US scientists proposed a new theory of how Alzheimer's disease kills brain cells they said opens new avenues of research into treatments for the fatal, brain-wasting disease.
They believe a chemical mechanism that naturally prunes away unwanted brain cells during early brain development somehow gets hijacked in Alzheimer's disease.
"The key player we're focusing on is a protein called APP," said Marc Tessier-Lavigne, executive vice president of research drug discovery at the US biotechnology company Genentech Inc , whose study appears in the journal Nature.
Tessier-Lavigne said amyloid precursor protein, or APP -- a key building block in brain plaques found in Alzheimer's disease -- is the driving force behind this process.
"We know that APP is...read the whole article
For more dementia information, click here
For Alzheimer's and dementia activities, click here
For information on being the best caregiver you can be, click here
For a great resource for those with dementia, caregivers and healthcare professinals, click here
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
