Senile dementia: causes and prevention

Drink little alcohol and read a lot. Treat diabetes and quit smoking. Have many good relationships.

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Senile dementia

SENILE DEMENTIA

Ten, just ten. It seems like a lot, but in reality there are really very few risk factors if we consider the severity of the pathology and how many people, with the increase in average age, are at risk. Let's talk about the senile dementia, which unfortunately is on the rise in all Western countries, partly due to the lack of attention to 10 key risk factors, which have much to do with lifestyle—from proper nutrition to smoking. From proper physical activity to a sedentary lifestyle.

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WHAT IS DEMENTIA?

La senile dementia It is not a specific disease but it is a neurological condition which brings with it a progressive loss of brain function, such as to interfere with everyday activities. Generally, affected patients are over sixty years of age but cases of early dementia are increasing..

According to the latest data published by the Ministry of Health, they would be over 1 million cases of dementia throughout the country, of which approximately 600.000 are those who suffer from Alzheimer. And the forecasts are not at all rosy: theWorld Health Organization, WHO, warns that by 2030 there could be around 75 million cases worldwide, with a peak of 132 million by 2050: 10 million per year, 1 new case diagnosed every 3 seconds.

But what are the symptoms of dementia, and how does this process of brain degeneration begin? Let's find out together.

CAUSES

Senile dementia is the emergency of the near future. According to specialists, with the increase in life expectancy, the number of elderly who will get sick will grow exponentially.

The risk of developing senile dementia concerns each and every one of us.However, it can be kept at bay by addressing the factors that cause the disease. There are at least ten of them, and combating them significantly reduces the risk of developing the disease.

According to the first document of the Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention and Care, an American commission on the prevention and treatment of senile dementia, one in three cases could be avoided if people paid attention to certain factors.

It must be taken into account that with the current data, no hereditary component has been found in various forms of dementia. This means that a daughter or granddaughter of a person with Alzheimer's or dementia will not be more likely than other people with no family history of these conditions to experience one form or another.

SYMPTOMS

For the symptoms, lthe affected person has difficulty learning and memorizing new information, tends to be repetitive, often loses objectsie in some cases he tends to blame the family members.

As the disease worsens, the person affected by senile dementia shows increasing difficulty in carrying out simple or complex tasks such as driving a car or operating the washing machinee.

Added to this is the difficulty in moving around the street completely independently: one tends to forget the reason why one left the house or the way back to one's home.

In particular, Specialists believe that senile dementia develops through 3 main stages:

  • Debut: they appear initial symptoms of the condition. The person begins to experience minor memory problems, moments of slurred reasoning, a lack of initiative, and mild difficulty expressing themselves or understanding new concepts.
  • Intermediate: worsening of the initial symptoms and appearance of new disorders such as confusion, for several moments a day. Limited ability to articulate language and the rise of problems with the the memory long-termThe subject loses track of time, at times he doesn't know where he is and he may have some emotional variations due to the situation.
  • Final (or advanced): the symptomatic picture worsens, inevitably, and affects every aspect of the individual's life (need for assistance, also continues, and difficulty carrying out any type of daily activity).

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RISK FACTORS FOR SENILE DEMENTIA

A group of researchers from the University of Oxford in England has developed a new method, called UKBDRS, for initial screening and early diagnosis of dementia. The study, published in the journal BMJ Mental Health, involves evaluating, with a final score, these 11 risk factors: age, education, diabetes, current or previous depression, previous ictus, dementia in parents, economic disadvantage, blood pressure high, high cholesterol, solitude, male sex.

PREVENTION

Unfortunately There are no specific treatments for senile dementiaThere are no drugs capable of stopping the neurodegenerative process, and treatments are limited to attempts to contain the progression of senile dementia, through some acetylcholinesterase inhibitor drugs, antihypertensives e anticoagulants.
On the other hand, an entire scientific literature now demonstrates that senile dementia can be prevented with appropriate lifestyles.
  • To study. According to the report presented by theAlzheimer's Association International Conference In London, disease prevention must start early, at school. One of the risk factors is the low level of education. So, studying even for several years of your life keeps your neurons in shape.
  • Avoid excessive alcohol. Who does alcohol abuse People are more likely to develop diseases like Alzheimer's as they age. Therefore, it's best to avoid excessive alcohol consumption to keep your mind healthy.
  • Don't neglect your hearing. Who has hearing problems are more likely to develop dementia. Therefore, it's important to address hearing problems early, without dragging the issue out for years, which could also lead to hearing loss.
  • Take care of thehypertensionPeople with high blood pressure are more likely to get sick, so it's important to treat hypertension. This will lower your risk of heart attack, stroke, and Alzheimer. The high blood pressure can affect brain health even with mini stroke and circulation problems such as small blood vessel diseasePathologies such asatherosclerosis, angiopatia e cerebral vasculitis.
  • Lose weight.obesity It's one of the risk factors. It doesn't require huge sacrifices at the table. Just don't make a Sedentary life and take care of your diet, following a balanced diet.
  • Do physical activity. Lead an active life Exercise is one of the best ways to keep your body and mind fit. It helps you relax, wards off dementia, and reduces excess calories.
  • Treating diabetesDiabetic subjects are more likely to encounter this type of problem. For this reason, it is important to follow targeted therapies. diabetes treatment while at the same time lowering the risk of dementia.
  • Improve social contactsExpanding your network of friends and acquaintances helps keep your neurons active. This is an important factor for keep loneliness at bay and reduces the risk of dementia.
  • Treating Depression. Overcome the depressive states It's not simple but it's not impossible either. trough It should be treated with the help of trained professionals. This will help reduce your risk of developing dementia by 35 percent.
  • Stop smokingSmoking, in addition to harming the smoker and those around him, also increases the risk of developing dementia. Quitting this habit is beneficial for the health of both body and mind.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DEMENTIA AND ALZHEIMER'S?

Dementia presents behavioral, cognitive, and functional symptoms, but they aren't yet associated with a precise diagnosis or pathology. In some rare cases, it can even regress, leading to complete recovery. Alzheimer's disease falls into the category of senile dementia, but is diagnosed through a medical examination, a CT scan, and even a blood test. And it doesn't regress, but rather worsens.

DEMENTIA AND PSEUDODEMANCE

Not always the typical symptoms of dementia lead to a diagnosis of this kind. It may also be pseudodementia, a non-unstoppable involutionary process of the brain. The most frequent signs of pseudodementia are difficulty in concentration, some psychomotor delay, attention deficit, difficulty making decisions quickly, tendency to forget. There are studies that show that 20-30 percent of diagnoses of dementia In reality, they refer to a pseudodementia condition. Antidepressant therapy may be helpful, although it varies from person to person.

LIFESTYLES. FEW RULES BUT VERY EFFECTIVE.:

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