My grandmother’s story is the same as many others, but the fact that an almost 90-year-old person, unfortunately, often tends to suffer from the so-called “modest” senile dementia, does not console us, household members. My grandmother is an elderly woman who, a couple of years ago, or maybe less, regularly used a computer, posted on Facebook, copied my articles into Word (in fact, she is my archivist), and went with her grandfather to a beautician. and hairdresser at least once a month. Some of these things, in particular her favorite PC job she learned to use at the University of Seniors, she can barely do already, and my mom accompanies her to dye her hair blonde. This is your disease, which is still a great confusion even for specialists: how do you explain that, in your opinion, we are in the month of August, and then that you remember all the details of the life of your great-grandchildren? How is it possible that he has these strange beliefs that the house he lives in is not really his home, and then he asks me if I want him to cook me the artichokes that I love so much? As the MC wrote here, even we who love her and have always seen her as modern (a term she loves a lot), independent, curious, “it took us a while to take note of because it’s hard to understand.” “believe” in this disease: it strikes you, embarrasses, deceives, mocks, possesses the person you love, like a vicious bug that plays hide and seek and jumps out to play a trick on you when you least expect it, and if you try catch him in flight to look into his eyes, he quickly leaves, disguising himself with the colors of normality. Try to neutralize the disease, at least for a few hours, which is still possible thanks to that adjective “moderate”, which means that my grandmother is still here, she is here, of course, she has changed, but she has not run away, we come up with impromptu solutions. And it so happened that a few weeks ago, on a Sunday without a particularly good mood, since there were four of us visiting her, I offered to play straight forty, as we used to do in the beach house when I was little. There were some hesitation, but then he agreed. And he played great. He really remembered all the rules: he caught me breaking a couple of them. Needless to say, it was a beautiful Sunday. Instead, it is very helpful to say that playing cards can be a valuable tool for preventing memory loss and the risk of dementia. Today is a big risk. Some information and some data: therefore senile dementia is a neurological condition that causes a progressive loss of brain function and usually occurs in people over 60/65 years of age. Rarely, senile dementia can affect people younger than 60/65 years of age. In this case, the disease is called early or juvenile senile dementia. Currently, according to the World Health Organization, there are about Every year, 10 million new cases of dementia are registered worldwide.once every 3 seconds. Today, about 50 million people have been affected.. If we take into account the aging of the world population, then in 2030 there may be 82 million patients. In 2050, the number of cases will rise to 152 million. There are no miracle cures, but there are, as we said, things that can be done to prevent it. and today these strategies related to our lifestyle have been collected into one study by a group of researchers from Beijing, which lasted ten years.
A recent study coordinated by Caitlin Casaletto, professor of neuroscience at the UCLA Center for Memory and Aging, showed howphysical activity you increase the levels by one protein note for strengthen communication between brain cells through synapses. According to the researchers, this may be a definite component to the prevention of dementia. A protective effect was also found in active older people whose brains showed signs of some cognitive diseases and Alzheimer’s disease. A 2020 study coordinated by Enrique Rivero, also from the University of California and published in the journal Journals of Gerontology, demonstrated how physical activity can reduce the risk of dementia by 30-80%, but researchers have not been able to confirm how this might occur biologically in humans. The new study was the first to trace how the functioning of synapses is the pathway by which L’physical activity keeps the brain healthy. A healthy brain ensures that electrical signals can be transmitted seamlessly through synapses to neurons and other cells in the body. To perform this operation, the brain must constantly replace and balance the proteins consumed during synapses. But today, in addition to the well-known benefits of physical activity (which does not mean exercising, they are different things), a study from the National Center for Neurological Disorders in Beijing, China, added other things that have not yet been studied. The researchers analyzed 29,000 adults over 60 with normal cognitive function who participated in the China Study on Cognition and Aging. A healthy lifestyle score was calculated that combines six factors: healthy diet; regular exercise; active social contact; cognitive activity; non-smoker; and don’t drink alcohol.
Writing, reading, playing cards or other games at least twice a week was the second area of healthy behaviour. Other areas included not drinking alcohol, exercising more than 150 minutes per week at moderate intensity or more than 75 minutes at high intensity, and never smoking or being ex-smokers. Social contact at least twice a week was the sixth healthy behavior and included activities such as visiting family and friends or going to parties.. After accounting for factors that could affect the results, the researchers found that any healthy behavior was associated with slower-than-average memory decline over 10 years. A healthy diet had the biggest impact on slowing down memory decline, followed by cognitive performance and then exercise.. In general, people with four to six healthy behaviors, or two to three, respectively. up to 90% and up to 30% less chance of developing dementia or mild cognitive impairment compared to those who were less healthy, the BMJ reports. Dr Susan Mitchell, Head of Alzheimer’s Research in the UK, said: “This is a well-conducted study involving people over a long period of time and adds substantial evidence that a healthy lifestyle can help maintain memory and competent thinking as we age. . Too few of us know that there are things we can all do to reduce our chances of developing dementia later in life.”
For those who, unfortunately, are already dealing with neurodegenerative diseases, it is useful to remember that there are many Italian masters involved in the research and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, a neurodegenerative disease characterized by cognitive decline that affects 600,000 people worldwide. Italy and over 40 million worldwide. Among them are the Best Neurological Institute in Milan, the San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli Center in Brescia, the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, the Ca’Granda Foundation – the Ospedale Maggiore Polyclinic in Milan, the Gemelli Irccs Polyclinic Foundation Center – the Catholic University. Rima, Department of Alzheimer’s Disease Evaluation at the Molinet Hospital in Citta della Salute, Turin. However, in the bookstore there is Marco Annicchiarico with his i care dear, Einaudi, p. 239, 17 euros. This precious book was born from an exchange of experiences that saved the author and comforted many others. Always MC on Annicchiarico wrote: “Marco stopped calling her mom (she suffers from Alzheimer’s) when he realized she no longer knew what she was; now it seems more appropriate to call her Lucia, and for her, judging by the moments, he is “my cousin”, “my brother” or “this one”. Marco is a “dear self-taught doctor” who followed his mother step by step as she sank into Alzheimer’s, so much so that he left his job and the woman he lived with until he put his whole life on hold. He then began blogging stories of his day-to-day coexistence with Lucia, his obsessions and recklessness, his attempts to connect with her, his anguish as a man. and like a son, but also unreasonable outbursts of happiness (yes, happiness), surreal dialogues, and the unexpected tenderness that dementia bestows on those who refuse to restrain her and try to “just” follow her.
Source: Elle