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Page 12 Medical Directory 2011Study: Healthy living can help prevent Alzheimer’sMARILYNN MARCHIONEAP Medical WriterPARIS — Taking care ofyour body just might saveyour mind. Millions of casesof Alzheimer’s diseaseworldwide could be preventedby curbing risk factorssuch as high blood pressure,smoking, obesity and lack ofexercise, new research suggests.The study offers morethan the usual pep talk abouthealthy living. Seven conditionsor behaviors accountfor up to half of the 35 millioncases of Alzheimer’saround the world, it found.With no cure or treatment toreverse the mind-robbingdisease, preventing newcases is crucial.The study was presentedat the Alzheimer’sAssociation InternationalConference in France, wheresessions on prevention havebeen drawing standingroom-onlycrowds for severaldays.“Prevention is a particularlyattractive option giventhe state of therapy. That’swhy there’s so much interestin it,” said William Thies, theassociation’s chief scientificofficer.The study was led byDeborah Barnes, associateprofessor of psychiatry at theUniversity of California, SanFrancisco. Results also werepublished online by theBritish journal LancetNeurology. The researchershave grants from theAlzheimer’s Association andthe U.S. National Instituteson Aging.The study used a mathematicalmodel to estimatethe impact of top modifiablerisk factors for Alzheimer’sdisease: smoking, depression,low education, diabetes,too little exercise, andobesity and high blood pressurein mid-life.How much of an impacteach one has on totalAlzheimer’s cases dependson how common it is andhow strongly it affectsdementia risk. Researcherscalculated the impact globallyand just for the UnitedStates.Worldwide, the biggestimpact on Alzheimer’s casesis low education, becauseilliteracy is so common, theyfound. Low education can bea sign of many factors thatharm minds, such as poornutrition. But it also is harmfulby itself, because there isless opportunity to develop“brain power” that can carryyou into old age.“Education, even at ayoung age, starts to buildProviding long-term skilled nursing & shortterm subacute rehabilitation featuringphysical, occupational & speech therapy.For information regarding admissions,call Jennine Sauriol at 716-713-1911or Terra Sturtz at 716-870-0180In the United States, inactivity is theleading problem because a third of thepopulation is sedentary.your neural networks,” sobeing deprived of it meansless brain development,Barnes explained.Smoking had the secondbiggest impact on casesworldwide, followed by toolittle exercise.In the United States, however,inactivity is the leadingproblem because a third ofthe population is sedentary,Barnes said.Depression made the nextbiggest impact onAlzheimer’s cases in theU.S., followed by smokingand high blood pressure inmid-life. Untreated or inadequatelytreated depressionhas long been known to raisethe risk of developingAlzheimer’s disease.•Arthroscopic Surgery•Joint Replacement366-7150322 Park AvenueDunkirk, NY 14048Reducing these seven riskfactors by 25 percent couldmean 3 million fewer casesof Alzheimer’s worldwide,including half a million inthe U.S., researchers estimated.Reducing risk factorsby 10 percent would translateto 1.1 million fewercases.“It gives us a little bit ofhope about things we coulddo now about the epidemicthat is coming our way,”Barnes said.Alzheimer’s cases areexpected to triple by 2050, toaround 106 million worldwide.“We can do somethingabout this,” said Dr. RonaldPetersen, a Mayo Clinicdementia specialist who hadno role in the study. A commonmisconception is thatyou’re “dealt a deck of cardsat birth,” he said, but “peopleneed not just sit back andwatch this unfold.”BOARD CERTIFIEDORTHOPEDIC SURGEONS• JAMES P. FITZGERALD, MD •• KEVIN M. OUWELEEN, MD ••Hand Surgery•Fracture Management934-3493849 Routes 5 & 20Irving, NY 14081134858