New hope for dementia and Alzheimers prevention and treatment

Dementia rate among English and Welsh seniors drops 25% in past 20 years.

The New York Times reported that the drop in dementia rates among people 65 and older in England and Wales probably mimics a trend in developing countries all over the world.
The Lancet, the medical professional journal that published the British study, also published a Danish one with similar results. It showed that people who had reached their 90s in 2010 outscored those in their 90s ten years ago when given a standard test of mental ability.

The studies also confirmed that the rate of dementia falls as people become better educated and learn to control their blood pressure and cholesterol.

The two studies may cause us to rethink the social and economic implications of dementia rates because until now, experts assumed they would remain constant.

French workers who retired 5 years later than usual have 15% lower risk of dementia

At the same Boston Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, a study revealed that workers who retired at 65 instead of 60 had a declining risk of dementia for each extra year they worked. The study of 429,000 retired French workers was reported on CBC News; http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2013/07/17/business-dementia-retirement.html

Cure for Alzheimer’s 5 years away?

According to an article in The Daily Mail , experiments on mice have shown that a new vaccine not only halts the advance of Alzheimer’s, but also repairs existing brain damage.

Clinical trials of the drug, called Betablock and made by Dublin’s Elan Pharmaceuticals, are already underway in Britain. Results so far appear to show that the drug is safe and has no side effects.
The vaccine reduces plaques, but beyond that, a test devised at Edinburgh University’s department of neuroscience and confirmed by Toronto and Florida researchers found dramatic improvements in the memory of mice given the drug over several months.

The vaccine will be generally available only after large-scale clinical studies.

Keep your mind working

To help ward off dementia and Alzheimer’s, keep your mind working and keep your body active. If some of your behaviour makes you wonder whether your mind is slipping a little, trust yourself. Take up your own cause and discuss your concerns with your doctor sooner, rather than later. And always keep your eyes and ears open for new developments in understanding, drugs and other treatments for dementia and Alzheimer’s.