Latest news with #JAMANeurology
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
A Study Has Revealed The Biggest Risk Factors For Getting Early Dementia, And Knowledge Is Power
A recent study by the University of Exeter and Maastricht University published in JAMA Neurology has identified some of the factors that can lead to early cases of dementia ― some of which may surprise you. The data analyzed the behaviors of over 350,000 participants younger than 65 across the United Kingdom to evaluate young-onset dementia, which occurs before age 65. The researchers found there are 15 common issues that can contribute to the early development of the condition. A few have to do with genetics and other elements outside our control, but many others are modifiable. The study is meaningful to experts because it 'looks at young-onset dementia risk factors in a way that has only been done in late-onset dementias previously,' according to Dr. Kevin Bickart, an assistant professor in neurology at the University of California Los Angeles Health's David Geffen School of Medicine. The study features 'a very large sample that was prospectively followed from healthy baseline to a dementia diagnosis with lots of data collection.' Here's what to know: The biggest risk factors for young-onset dementia: Related: "This Has Taken Me Years And Years And YEARS To Figure Out": This Woman's Clever Way To Tell If Someone Is Your Real Friend Is Being Called The Most Accurate Thing Ever Related: 25 Eye-Opening Confessions From A Trauma Therapist That Changed The Way I Think About Mental Health The large-scale study looked at 39 possible risk factors and determined that 15 of them made the biggest difference when it came to developing dementia before the age of 65. Those include: Social isolation Lower formal education Lower socioeconomic status Carrying two copies of the APOE gene (a marker that influences Alzheimer's risk) Vitamin D deficiency Hearing impairment Alcohol use disorder No alcohol use (abstinence) Depression High C-reactive protein levels Lower handgrip strength (physical frailty) Orthostatic hypotension (a form of low blood pressure) Stroke Diabetes Heart disease Although some recognized risks are out of many people's control ― like being a carrier of the APOE gene or your socioeconomic status ― others can be managed through lifestyle changes. What you can do to lower your risk of early-onset dementia. Overall, the study results are consistent with what medical experts have been advising patients for years. Dr. Arman Fesharaki-Zadeh, an assistant professor of psychiatry and of neurology at the Yale School of Medicine, recommended three 'lifestyle measures' that folks may want to consider when trying to lower their risk of young-onset dementia ― starting with physical exercise. 'An active daily exercise practice can have far-reaching benefits, which include enhanced neurocognitive function,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said, adding that physical activity can boost neurogenesis (the formation of new neurons and synapses), vasculogenesis (the creation of new blood vessels) while also providing inherent mood benefits. Next, focus on eating nourishing foods. Fesharaki-Zadeh championed a Mediterranean-based diet, mentioning its well-documented benefits. 'Such dietary practice, which includes food groups such as green leafy vegetables, olive oil, salmon and blueberries, is rich in vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, as well as antioxidants ― all neuroprotective factors,' he explained. Fesharaki-Zadeh recommended cognitive, mood and social stimulation to keep your mind sharp. For cognitive stimulation, this could look like learning a new language or attending a seminar, listening to music or dancing. Basically, anything that engages your mind will help it stay healthy. Mood stimulation, on the other hand, relates to stress reduction practices, 'such as mindfulness and yoga,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said. As for social stimulation, it's pretty simple: Try to connect with other humans face-to-face and actually talk to them as much as possible. 'In the era of pandemic and now post-pandemic, quality social connections should increasingly be encouraged and practiced,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said. While these habits don't cover the whole list of dementia risk factors, they are a pretty solid article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in Goodful: Therapists Are Revealing The Moments That Made Them Break Their "No Judgment" Rule, And I'm Honestly Speechless Also in Goodful: 19 "Garbage" Modern Trends People Refuse To Partake In Despite Their Popularity Also in Goodful: Medical Professionals Are Sharing "Mundane" Things That Actually Make So Many People Sick
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
A Study Has Revealed The Biggest Risk Factors For Getting Early Dementia, And Knowledge Is Power
A recent study by the University of Exeter and Maastricht University published in JAMA Neurology has identified some of the factors that can lead to early cases of dementia ― some of which may surprise you. The data analyzed the behaviors of over 350,000 participants younger than 65 across the United Kingdom to evaluate young-onset dementia, which occurs before age 65. The researchers found there are 15 common issues that can contribute to the early development of the condition. A few have to do with genetics and other elements outside our control, but many others are modifiable. The study is meaningful to experts because it 'looks at young-onset dementia risk factors in a way that has only been done in late-onset dementias previously,' according to Dr. Kevin Bickart, an assistant professor in neurology at the University of California Los Angeles Health's David Geffen School of Medicine. The study features 'a very large sample that was prospectively followed from healthy baseline to a dementia diagnosis with lots of data collection.' Here's what to know: The biggest risk factors for young-onset dementia: Related: "This Has Taken Me Years And Years And YEARS To Figure Out": This Woman's Clever Way To Tell If Someone Is Your Real Friend Is Being Called The Most Accurate Thing Ever Related: 25 Eye-Opening Confessions From A Trauma Therapist That Changed The Way I Think About Mental Health The large-scale study looked at 39 possible risk factors and determined that 15 of them made the biggest difference when it came to developing dementia before the age of 65. Those include: Social isolation Lower formal education Lower socioeconomic status Carrying two copies of the APOE gene (a marker that influences Alzheimer's risk) Vitamin D deficiency Hearing impairment Alcohol use disorder No alcohol use (abstinence) Depression High C-reactive protein levels Lower handgrip strength (physical frailty) Orthostatic hypotension (a form of low blood pressure) Stroke Diabetes Heart disease Although some recognized risks are out of many people's control ― like being a carrier of the APOE gene or your socioeconomic status ― others can be managed through lifestyle changes. What you can do to lower your risk of early-onset dementia. Overall, the study results are consistent with what medical experts have been advising patients for years. Dr. Arman Fesharaki-Zadeh, an assistant professor of psychiatry and of neurology at the Yale School of Medicine, recommended three 'lifestyle measures' that folks may want to consider when trying to lower their risk of young-onset dementia ― starting with physical exercise. 'An active daily exercise practice can have far-reaching benefits, which include enhanced neurocognitive function,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said, adding that physical activity can boost neurogenesis (the formation of new neurons and synapses), vasculogenesis (the creation of new blood vessels) while also providing inherent mood benefits. Next, focus on eating nourishing foods. Fesharaki-Zadeh championed a Mediterranean-based diet, mentioning its well-documented benefits. 'Such dietary practice, which includes food groups such as green leafy vegetables, olive oil, salmon and blueberries, is rich in vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, as well as antioxidants ― all neuroprotective factors,' he explained. Fesharaki-Zadeh recommended cognitive, mood and social stimulation to keep your mind sharp. For cognitive stimulation, this could look like learning a new language or attending a seminar, listening to music or dancing. Basically, anything that engages your mind will help it stay healthy. Mood stimulation, on the other hand, relates to stress reduction practices, 'such as mindfulness and yoga,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said. As for social stimulation, it's pretty simple: Try to connect with other humans face-to-face and actually talk to them as much as possible. 'In the era of pandemic and now post-pandemic, quality social connections should increasingly be encouraged and practiced,' Fesharaki-Zadeh said. While these habits don't cover the whole list of dementia risk factors, they are a pretty solid article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in Goodful: Therapists Are Revealing The Moments That Made Them Break Their "No Judgment" Rule, And I'm Honestly Speechless Also in Goodful: 19 "Garbage" Modern Trends People Refuse To Partake In Despite Their Popularity Also in Goodful: Medical Professionals Are Sharing "Mundane" Things That Actually Make So Many People Sick
The Star
3 days ago
- Health
- The Star
Don't dismiss the warning signs of a ministroke
Kristin Kramer woke up early on a Tuesday morning 10 years ago because one of her dogs needed to go out. Then, a couple of odd things happened. When she tried to call her other dog, 'I couldn't speak,' she said. As she walked downstairs to let them into the yard, 'I noticed that my right hand wasn't working.' But she went back to bed, 'which was totally stupid,' said Kramer, now 54, an office manager in Muncie, Indiana, United States. 'It didn't register that something major was happening,' especially because, reawakening an hour later, 'I was perfectly fine.' So she 'just kind of blew it off' and went to work. It's a common response to the neurological symptoms that signal a TIA, a transient ischaemic attack or ministroke. At least 240,000 Americans experience one each year, with the incidence increasing sharply with age. Because the symptoms disappear quickly, usually within minutes, people don't seek immediate treatment, putting them at high risk for a bigger stroke. Kramer felt some arm tingling over the next couple of days and saw her doctor, who found nothing alarming on a computed tomography (CT) scan. But then she started 'jumbling' her words and finally had a relative drive her to an emergency room. By then, she could not sign her name. After an magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), she recalled, 'my doctor came in and said, 'You've had a small stroke.'' Did those early-morning aberrations constitute a TIA? Might a 911 call and an earlier start on anticlotting drugs have prevented her stroke? 'We don't know,' Kramer said. She's doing well now, but faced with such symptoms again, 'I would seek medical attention.' Cognitive decline Now, a large epidemiological study by researchers at the University of Alabama-Birmingham and the University of Cincinnati, published in JAMA Neurology , points to another reason to take TIAs seriously: Over five years, study participants' performance on cognitive tests after a TIA drops as steeply as it does among victims of a full-on stroke. 'If you have one stroke or one TIA, with no other event over time and no other change in your medical status, the rate of cognitive decline is the same,' said Victor Del Bene, a neuropsychologist and lead author of the study. An accompanying editorial by Eric Smith, a neurologist at the University of Calgary, was pointedly headlined 'Transient Ischemic Attack – Not So Transient After All!' The study showed that even if the symptoms resolve – typically within 15 minutes to an hour – TIAs set people on a different cognitive slope later in life, Smith said in an interview: 'A long-lasting change in people's cognitive ability, possibly leading to dementia.' The study, analysing findings from data on more than 30,000 participants, followed three groups of adults age 45 or older with no history of stroke or TIA. 'It's been a hard group to study because you lack the baseline data of how they were functioning prior to the TIA or stroke,' Del Bene said. With this longitudinal study, however, researchers could separate those who went on to have a TIA from a group who went on to suffer a stroke and also from an asymptomatic control group. Brain altered The team adjusted their findings for a host of demographic variables and health conditions. Immediately after a TIA, 'we don't see an abrupt change in cognition,' as measured by cognitive tests administered every other year, Del Bene said. 'The stroke group showed a steep decline, but the TIA and control group participants 'were more or less neck and neck.' Five years later, the picture was different. People who had experienced TIAs were cognitively better off than those who had suffered strokes. But both groups were experiencing cognitive decline, and at equally steep rates. After accounting for various possible causes, the researchers concluded that the cognitive drop reflected not demographic factors, chronic illnesses, or normal ageing, but the TIA itself. 'It's not dementia,' Del Bene said of the decline after a TIA. 'It may not even be mild cognitive impairment. 'But it's an altered trajectory.' Of course, most older adults do have other illnesses and risk factors, like heart disease, diabetes or smoking. 'These things together work synergistically to increase the risk for cognitive decline and dementia over time,' he said. The findings reinforce long-standing concerns that people experiencing TIAs don't respond quickly enough to the incident. 'These events are serious, acute and dangerous,' said Claiborne Johnston, a neurologist and chief medical officer of Harbor Health in Austin, Texas. After a TIA, neurologists put the risk of a subsequent stroke within 90 days at 5% to 20%, with half that risk occurring in the first 48 hours. 'Feeling back to normal doesn't mean you can ignore this, or delay and discuss it with your primary care doctor at your next visit,' Johnston said. The symptoms should prompt a 911 call and an emergency room evaluation. How to recognise a TIA? Tracy Madsen, an epidemiologist and emergency medicine specialist at the University of Vermont, promotes the BE FAST acronym: balance loss, eyesight changes, facial drooping, arm weakness, speech problems. The 'T' is for time, as in don't waste any. 'We know a lot more about how to prevent a stroke, as long as people get to a hospital,' said Madsen, vice-chair of an American Heart Association committee that, in 2023, revised recommendations for TIAs. The statement called for more comprehensive and aggressive testing and treatment, including imaging, risk assessment, anticlotting and other drugs, and counselling about lifestyle changes that reduce stroke risk. Unlike other urgent conditions, a TIA may not look dramatic or even be visible; patients themselves have to figure out how to respond. Karen Howze, 74, a retired lawyer and journalist in Reno, Nevada, didn't realise that she'd had several TIAs until after a doctor noticed weakness on her right side and ordered an MRI. Years later, she still notices some effect on 'my ability to recall words.' Perhaps 'transient ischaemic attack' is too reassuring a label, Johnston and a co-author argued in a 2022 editorial in JAMA. They suggested that giving a TIA a scarier name, like 'minor ischaemic stroke,' would more likely prompt a 911 call. The experts interviewed for this column all endorsed the idea of a name that includes the word 'stroke.' Changing medical practice is 'frustratingly slow,' Johnston acknowledged. Get help immediately But whatever the nomenclature, keeping BE FAST in mind could lead to more examples like Wanda Mercer, who shared her experience in a previous column. In 2018, she donated at the bloodmobile outside her office in Austin, where she was a systems administrator for the University of Texas, then walked two blocks to a restaurant for lunch. 'Waiting in line, I remember feeling a little lightheaded,' she said. 'I woke up on the floor.' Reviving, she assured the worried restaurant manager that she had merely fainted after giving blood. But the manager had already called an ambulance – this was smart move No. 1. The emergency doctors ran tests, saw no problems, gave Mercer intravenous fluids and discharged her. 'I began to tell my colleagues, 'Guess what happened to me at lunch!'' she recalled. But, she said, she had lost her words: 'I couldn't articulate what I wanted to say.' Smart move No. 2: Co-workers, suspecting a stroke, called the ambulance for the second time. 'I was reluctant to go,' Mercer said. 'But they were right.' This time, emergency room doctors diagnosed a minor stroke. Mercer has had no recurrences. She takes a statin and a baby aspirin daily, and sees her primary care doctor annually. Otherwise, at 73, she has retired to an active life of travel, pickleball, running, weightlifting and book groups. 'I'm very grateful,' she said, 'that I have a happy story to tell.' – KFF Health News/Tribune News Service KFF Health News is a US newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programmes of KFF – an independent source for US health policy research, polling and journalism.
Time of India
10-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Are you at high risk of dementia? Where you live might hold the clue, finds this US study
Dementia is something that touches the lives of millions of people—whether it's a loved one, a friend, or even ourselves as we age. It's not a specific disease but rather a general term for a decline in memory, thinking, or decision-making that interferes with everyday life. While it's most common in older adults, it's not a normal part of aging. That's an important distinction, and one that can help families better understand what's happening and how to get support. Talking about dementia can be tough. It can feel overwhelming, confusing, and even scary at times. But it's also a topic that deserves attention, care, and compassion. The more we know, the more we can do—whether that means noticing the early signs in a loved one, offering a helping hand to a caregiver, or simply learning how to be more supportive and understanding. There are different types of dementia, like Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, and more—each with their own symptoms and progression. And while there's no cure yet, there are treatments and strategies that can help improve quality of life and manage symptoms. So, what are your chances of getting dementia? A new study has shed light on this important question. The study published in JAMA Neurology has found regional variations in dementia incidence across the US in a nationally representative sample. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Switch to UnionBank Rewards Card UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo What did the study find? Researchers found that dementia rates in the U.S. vary a lot depending on where people live. Compared to the Mid-Atlantic region, dementia rates were: 25% higher in the Southeast 23% higher in the Northwest and Rocky Mountains 18% higher in the South 13% higher in the Southwest (including California) 7% higher in the Northeast (including New York) These regions were based on a CDC system that divides the country into 10 areas, each made up of 4 to 7 states. Even after considering things like age, race, heart health, and whether people lived in rural or city areas, these regional differences still showed up. The study focused on older adults in the Veterans Health Administration system. The researchers say these findings show the importance of planning health care and creating public health policies that are tailored to each region's needs. One step to a healthier you—join Times Health+ Yoga and feel the change
The Independent
09-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
How high is your risk of dementia? It may depend on where you live
How high is your risk of dementia? It might depend on where you live, according to a new study of U.S. veterans. A team at U.C. San Francisco said Monday that it had identified the regions where the chronic brain disorder occurs most often. Using the Mid-Atlantic region as the baseline for comparison, where dementia incidence rates were the lowest, they found that dementia was 25 percent higher in the Southeast. That included Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. Whereas, the Northwest and Rocky Mountain regions were both 23 percent higher. Other regions included in the study – one of the largest and most comprehensive of its kind – were the South and Southwest, which were 18 and 13 percent higher, respectively. California was included in the Southwest. The Northeast incidence rates were still higher than the Mid-Atlantic, but just by 7 percent. 'The study underscores the need to understand regional differences in dementia and the importance of region-specific prevention and intervention efforts,' UCSF Director of the Center for Population Brain Health Dr. Kristine Yaffe said in a statement. Yaffe was the senior author of the study, which was published in the journal JAMA Neurology. The study included the health records from more than 1.2 million veterans, noting that veterans have a higher prevalence of risk factors such as traumatic brain injuries, depression, and post-traumatic stress. The researchers found that the differences remained when they accounted for certain factors, including age, race, and cardiovascular disease. They noted that access to medical care may be more difficult in rural areas, compared with urban areas. Previous research has found higher rates of dementia in rural communities. Recently, other UCSF researchers found that proteins in spinal fluid may be the key to understanding why middle-aged people develop dementia. The onset of dementia is known to be tied to depression, but different types have their own causes. Alzheimer's disease is the most common form, impacting some 6.7 million Americans. Cases are estimated to double by the year 2060. There is currently no cure. The next step for these researchers is to investigate what the factors driving these differences are. They said they hoped that, by identifying areas with the highest incidence rates, resources can be better allocated and targeted interventions designed to mitigate the impact of dementia on vulnerable populations. 'Quality of education, early life conditions, and environmental exposures may be among those factors,' said first author Dr. Christina Dintica.
