“They say it takes a village to raise a child. Centered on that concept of communal flourishing, Northwest England’s first intergenerational care village, home to both older people and young children living and learning together, recently celebrated its official opening.
Stimulation, learning, fun—these are activities that are known to delay the progression of dementia, and what better way to add these critical elements of life to a daily regimen than to let a flock of preschoolers do it?”
‘A vitamin pill a day keeps the doctor away’
Supplements vs placebo are beneficial in preventing cognitive decline among older adults, according to study findings.” Researchers came to this conclusion after analyzing data from the COSMOS trials, which “included participants aged 60 and older who were randomly assigned to receive a cocoa extract (500 mg flavanols/day) and/or a daily multivitamin-mineral (Centrum Silver) supplement for the prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer.”
Multivitamin-Mineral Supplementation Prevents Cognitive Decline in Older Adults
Inexpensive Generic Sources for Centrum Silver
The results of a large-scale screening study could be used to develop blood tests to diagnose diseases such as Alzheimer’s before symptoms take hold.
“An analysis of around 1,500 blood proteins has identified biomarkers that can be used to predict the risk of developing dementia up to 15 years before diagnosis.
The findings, reported today in Nature Aging1, are a step towards a tool that scientists have been in search of for decades: blood tests that can detect Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia at a very early, pre-symptomatic stage.
Researchers screened blood samples from more than 50,000 healthy adults in the UK Biobank, 1,417 of whom developed dementia in a 14-year period.
They found that high blood levels of four proteins — GFAP, NEFL, GDF15 and LTBP2 — were strongly associated with dementia.”
“Get ready to focus on your brain, because according to the AAN, the era of preventive neurology has arrived. In fact, the academy is hoping that all Americans will be on the healthy brain train by 2050.
“It’s a brain health revolution,” Rost said. “We want to help the public understand that a lifetime of health begins with brain health.”
https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/12/health/brain-checkup-wellness/index.html
The FDA has granted breakthrough therapy designation to latozinemab, an investigational therapeutic designed to block sortilin and elevate progranulin to treat frontotemporal dementia with a progranulin gene mutation.
According to a press release from Alector Inc., the breakthrough designation was approved based on data from the phase 2 INFRONT-2 clinical trial of latozinemab in patients with the condition.
Across the United States, millions of families are confronting a seemingly impossible question: When dementia changes a relative, how much should they accommodate their new personality and desires?
Katie Engelhart, a writer for The New York Times Magazine, tells the story of one family’s experience.
“I talk to our dog; I talk to our cats. Mind you that these are not deep conversations, such as the ones I have with my wife. It turns out, however, that the presence of pets in the house can have profound effects on slowing the verbal cognitive decline in older individuals. There is one catch: you have to be living alone.”
“I believe this study underscores something that is all too real about disconnectedness in our modern culture. Loneliness and isolation are significant threats to physical and mental health. Recently, the US Surgeon General issued an advisory on the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation, and lack of connection in our country.1 Primary care clinicians need to be aware of this and ask patients specifically about their social networks and feelings of loneliness.”
“Reaching out to, and building connections with family, friends, and — importantly — others in our communities who are disconnected, is vitally important to health and well-being. And, in some cases, a household pet can be a big benefit. I tell this to my dog and cats all the time.”
GLP-1 agents such as semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) are game-changers. In addition to weight loss, they may reduce neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimers dementia, due to a reduction in metabolic syndrome, reduction in vascular events and neuroprotective effects.
“GLP-1 plays important role in augmenting insulin signalling inside the brain. GLP-1 receptors, present inside the brain, are also involved in cognition, synaptic transmission in hippocampal neurons, and cell apoptosis. Overexpression of this receptor is responsible for cognition enhancement and neuroprotection, while deficiency increases the chances of seizure and neurodegeneration (81, 82). Therefore, GLP-1 receptors are considered as validated target for exploring candidates with better neuroprotection and cognition enhancing abilities (83).”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9159769/
Want to slow memory loss after 60? A multivitamin may be the answer.
A group taking a multivitamin was two years younger in memory function than a group taking a placebo, research shows
It is the third in a series of studies assessing the cognitive effects of a daily multivitamin on older adults. And a systematic review, or meta-analysis, of the three studies accompanying the most recent paper said their cumulative results were similar: The group taking a multivitamin was two years younger in memory function compared with the group taking a placebo.
And don’t forget exercising and keeping your mind busy by reading and doing puzzles. If you are retired and watching cable TV and Fox News all day, doubt balanced meals or vitamins are going to help.
Post-COVID cognitive deficits
“Persistent cognitive deficits even in those without clinical neurological complications. When compared to normative age-matched data, these deficits were equivalent in magnitude to ageing from 50 to 70 years of age (1). This study indicated cognitive deficits were associated with the severity of the initial infective insult, post-acute mental health status, and a history of #COVID-19 associated #Encephalopathy, with strong concordance between subjective and objective deficits.”
CNMRI: Neurology, Sleep Medicine, MRI 