Posted 12/6/23
And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? -Matthew 6:27
Dementia 101 #11 What Causes Dementia? What Prevents it? (Spoiler: everything, depending on where you look)
Everything causes dementia!!!!
(Sound of me throwing down keyboard and grabbing a Twinkie)
Consider this a self-study. Feel free to skim these and/or add more in the comments below. ****Regardless, read my short summary at the bottom for a quick and real answer and ray of hope.****
Here are some examples of dementia causes the internet offers up to us They are all good sources and the studies are real:
Beta Amyloid peptide Plaques/Tau Tangles:
https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers/brain_tour_part_2
High Blood Pressure that isn’t treated:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7005583/
Hearing loss:
Depression:
Diet
https://studyfinds.org/diet-alzheimers-disease/
Inflammation
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6214864/
Climate Change:
Blood sugar issues:
Bad oral health:
https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/large-study-links-gum-disease-dementia
Anxiety:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7355582/
Poor sleep habits:
Untreated Sleep Apnea:
https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/blog/sleep-apnea-and-the-risk-of-alzheimers-disease
Cholesterol Medicines (can both cause and prevent) :
https://www.brightfocus.org/alzheimers/article/do-statins-increase-or-decrease-alzheimers-risk
High Cholesterol (Untreated)
Yes:
https://www.aan.com/PressRoom/Home/PressRelease/981
No:
Maybe the Good Cholesterol helps?
Hurts?:
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/heart-health/good-hdl-cholesterol-dementia-risk-rcna118772
Maybe it isn’t a brain problem at all?:
How about Mitochondria?:
Other reasonable thoughts:
Cerebrospinal Fluid leaks:
https://www.cedars-sinai.org/newsroom/new-research-detects-potential-hidden-cause-of-dementia/
Autophagy (the brain cell’s ability to remove waste) or something else, but not plaques nor tangles:
https://www.quantamagazine.org/what-causes-alzheimers-scientists-are-rethinking-the-answer-20221208/
A bunch of stuff:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8782548/
Decreased levels of this soluble protein called amyloid-beta 42- Wait, less BA? Oh, no, it is a slightly different kind. This may explain why Leqembi and similar work better than previous tries to remove the bad Beta Amyloid. (Think Good Cholesterol/bad Cholesterol, except in the BA plaque arena, but skip what I said a few lines above about Cholesterol
Heck, this one is so confusing, none of the staff want to put their name to it:
https://www.scienceboard.net/index.aspx?sec=ser&sub=def&pag=dis&ItemID=4722
What about Vitamins? I have plenty!:
How about several in one:
https://www.adrc.wisc.edu/dementia-matters/vitamin-deficiency-and-its-impact-brain-health
Low Vitamin D
Low B12:
https://neuro.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/jnp.12.3.389
But multivitamins are good, right?
https://www.alz.org/news/2022/daily-multivitamin-slows-cognitive-aging-in-three
Yes.
Too much of a good thing?
https://www.nhri.edu.tw/eng/news/more?id=626d61fe87a440b5a22425d4f5aa55ed
and
but especially this:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5085079/
(I have had one in a support group that this was the patient’s cause)
Despite some articles out there in the past, these also do not cause it:
https://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/controversial-claims-risk-factors
(Aluminum, Zinc, Manganese, Food-borne things)
Sweeteners?:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28428346/
They are not good for you compared to other things and probably do more harm than good, but being a primary cause is iffy at best:
Flu Shots?:
Nope
Silver fillings:
https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers/myths
Nope
It is just a normal part of aging:
Nope!!!! Getting older does increase the chances, but it is never inevitable. I also know a lady in Springfield with Alzheimer’s in her late 20s and I know a dozen over 100 without it. IT IS NOT NORMAL.
Genes:
VERY few people have such a genetically deterministic lineup that the WILL get the disease, without a doubt. Well under 10%…most believe well below 5% and many put it more in the 1-2% category. There are others, like my family, that have a propensity based on several factors, but this is certainly not the main cause. (Note: Folks with Down’s Syndrome die of dementia most of the time. The same gene issue that causes their “condition” is the primary target for the genetically-transmitted versions mentioned before…dubbed APOE4).
So what on Earth do we do?
We get to work on preventing it! We cannot control everything, but there are modifiable risk factors that we CAN work on…and feel empowered in doing so! It is pretty easy to understand all we need to do to do all we can do to prevent the disease…and between 33-40% of cases could be prevented (Link and Link):
Summary of most of them:
What’s Good For the Heart is Good For The Brain
(and likewise)!!!
Take care of:
- Blood pressure
- Blood sugar
- Stress
- Hearing loss
- Teeth
- Don’t fall and hit your head any more than you have to.
Do this as well:
- Spiritual disciplines: Like my grandpa wrote in his Bible: “Find a time and place to pray. Read your Bible every day!” It will help with your anxiety, it will bring you closer to God, and…oh, yes, it will allow you to petition the King of Kings!!!!
- Eat a Mediterranean or MIND diet…or at least eat healthy.
- Medicate what is broken and try to unbreak it (blood pressure, blood sugar= better health)
- Exercise
- Exercise our brains (Learn a new language, a new musical instrument, do a new type of art)
- Don’t smoke
- Don’t do drugs
- Join a wellness program at a senior center.
- Meditate and relax more.
- Keep the drinking to a minimum, or don’t at all.
- (I like this because of the source telling us to drink red wine: https://www.winespectator.com/articles/moderate-wine-consumption-linked-to-lower-risk-of-dementia ) If you must, do it in smaller amounts.
- Sleep enough…at least 3 sleep cycles per day. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/sleep-well-and-reduce-your-risk-of-dementia-and-death-2021050322508
- Help with research (LINK) We especially need people of color because we want treatments and a cure that works for everyone!
Bottom line:
Don’t spend 6 years doom scrolling the internet like I have looking for an answer. It is fruitless. It is a cloud with no rain in Death Valley.
Do the good things we can do to push back… and enjoy life!
While there is no 100% sure silver bullet universal cause of dementia, several of the above factor in. There are 2 new drugs (Leqembi and Donanemab) that, for the first time in human history, stop the progression of the disease in a meaningful way. They have considerable possible side effects all of which can be mitigated. They are expensive. However, they are a step in the right direction for the first time ever! We have entered the treatment era!
There are dozens of new drugs of the same style coming through trials. I expect a “cure” won’t be much of a silver bullet solution, but more of a set of pills addressing the environment causing the problem and a set of lifestyle modifications. We can already push it back by 20-40% of the duration with the above drugs if caught fast enough and if the person can withstand the drug.
We need to focus on what we can help with. The science is working hard at this. We need to take care of our hearts and our heads. We also need to be cautious at anyone selling a cure that does not exist.
All of this said, we are learning more every day. 😊 Someday this will be in the rear view.
Until then, we love on these folks and do what we are already doing. 🙂 When we say we are fighting to #EndALZ , we mean it!
Update:
Mom had what was likely bronchitis, or at least a nasty cough, for a while, but she seems over it. She has a little rasp/lung sound, but nothing of super concern. She seems, as much as someone who can’t talk nor make much in the way of movements, in the Christmas spirit. She likes Christmas songs and seems less symptomatic, in a parkinsonism sense, when they are on. 🙂
If you can donate to my Longest Day Shark Jump event that seems like a lot further away than it is, here is the link:
I really appreciate the donations. They do go 100% to 2 important causes: shortening the list above and helping the caregiver. Those are my two big goals as well. 🙂 The research is happening and is advancing…but the task is hard.