HealthAug15

SOUND MIND ••••
By Cheryl B. Lemine
What happens when memory “glitches” thwart living an independent life
filled with work and social activities? This isn’t the “I forgot that appointment
but remembered it later” scenario. It’s even beyond the temporary cognitive
speed bump of forgetting someone’s name. It surfaces as the inability to
retrieve the recently read or learned information used in daily life.
And then, as it progresses, it begins
to block one’s ability to routinely
recall important dates or events.
It might even reveal itself in
repeated requests for the
same information, necessity for
reminders, or assistance from electronic devices
or even loved ones to access information once
freely available without assistance. It can make
planning, organizing and accomplishing work
and social tasks difficult or impossible. This loss
of cognitive independence may be Alzheimer’s
disease, known mostly for the damage it does
to both memory and cognition — learning
and understanding. Alzheimer’s disease can
affect anyone, and is the most common form
of Dementia. It’s also the sixth leading cause of
death in America. According to www.alz.org,
one in three seniors 65 or older will die with
Alzheimer’s or another form of Dementia.
But could something as simple as physical
activity make a difference in postponing
Alzheimer’s, or it effects? That’s precisely what
two important studies, the findings of which were
released last year, investigated.
Scientific studies of Alzheimer’s aren’t new,
but longer ones allow for more comprehensive
results and their longevity allows for more than
one “risk factor” to be considered.
The Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to
Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability
(FINGER) Study took 2 years. The scientists
studied five elements for slowing the disease
— one being physical activity. The Cleveland
Clinic study lasted 18 months, and observed the
physical structure of the brain in four different
sets of participants. While each study offered a
different approach to the issue, both concluded
that physical activity appears to factor in when it
comes to slowing Alzheimer’s progress.
August 2015
healthsourcemag.com—23