062322 SLMD ISSUE DE

South Lake Medical Directory x June 23, 2022 x 3
Many people are fearful of developing
Alzheimer’s disease, especially those
with a family history of the condition.
Researchers are investigating innovative
treatments for Alzheimer’s and other dementias,
but no cure exists right now.
There are steps people can take, however,
to help maintain and support their
brain health. These activities often help
with physical and emotional health and
are generally positive habits to foster, especially
as people age. In fact, a report
from The Lancet found the risk of dementia
is lower among people who adhere to
these healthy habits:
• Get physical. According to Harvard
Medical School, exercise keeps the brain
healthy by helping release chemicals
that support the development of new
nerve cells and connections between
brain cells. Exercise also improves mental
health, blood pressure and the regulation
of blood sugar, all of which can impact
the development of cognitive diseases like
Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Staying
physically active can become more difficult
if someone’s health declines, but
doctors and other medical providers can
share ways to maintain physical activity
even if mobility is limited.
• Keep your brain active. Engaging in
mentally stimulating activities may help
keep the brain fit and potentially stave off
dementia or other types of cognitive decline.
For example, people who have cognitively
demanding jobs (like accountants
or math teachers) or who engage in cognitively
stimulating activities (like learning
a second language or how to play
a musical instrument) may be at lower
risk for developing cognitive decline and
dementia, according to Harvard Medical
School. Activities like these and more can
also decrease feelings of depression,
MATTER OF HEALTH
Maintaining Brain Health
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
Staying mentally active and tracking your brain health can
help improve your chances against dementia.
isolation and loneliness, which occur
more frequently as people age and are
also associated with an increased risk for
developing dementia, according to the
National Institute on Aging.
• Track your brain health and get
help early. One way to detect changes
in brain health is to track memory and
other thinking-skill performance over
time. Detecting changes in memory is
critical to slowing the progression of
Alzheimer’s, which can begin 15 to 20
years before the onset of obvious symptoms.
Some changes in mood or memory
that may raise red flags are often noticed
by other people, not by the individual
experiencing the changes, making it important
for older adults who live alone or
who do not have large social circles to
track their own brain health.
One option for tracking brain health
is the Alzheimer Prevention Trials (APT)
Nurse Practitioners:
Esther Pelissier, ARPN-BC
Irene Gan, PMHNP
Raykha Crag-Chaderton, PMHNP-BC
Rachael Pittala, ARPN-BC
Therapists:
Michael Kellogg, LMHC, ATR-BC
Randie Morillo, LCSW, ACSW
Amy Singleton, LMHC
Brooke Parker, LMHC
Cristal Daniel, LMHC
Rachael Pittala
Esther Pelissier
Webstudy, funded by
the National Institutes
of Health, which monitors
an individual’s brain
health through regular
online memory testing
that can be completed
anywhere, anytime from
a computer, laptop or
tablet. Participants take
no-cost, online memory
tests quarterly that are
automatically shared with
researchers who track results
over time. If changes
in memory are detected
and a participant is close enough to a
study site, he or she may be invited to an
in-person evaluation and, if appropriate,
given the option to join an Alzheimer’s
clinical trial.
While researchers are working to advance
treatments and find a cure for
Ryan L. Mendro, D.D.S, MS
Lucia Roca Mendro, D.D.S, M.D.S
Alzheimer’s, it’s important that people
practice healthy brain habits and monitor
their brain health as they age to detect
any changes in memory as early as
possible. Without a cure, taking preventive
measures and maintaining a healthy
lifestyle are the best defenses against the
disease.
Find more information at aptwebstudy.org.
Alzheimer’s Facts
• More than 1 in 9 people age 65
and older has Alzheimer’s disease, according
to the Alzheimer’s Association.
• Black adults are twice as likely to develop
Alzheimer’s as compared to white
adults, according to the National Institute
on Aging.
• Hispanic or Latino adults are 1.5
times as likely to develop Alzheimer’s
compared to white adults, according to
the Alzheimer’s Association.
• According to the Alzheimer’s
Association, 1 in 3 seniors dies with
dementia.
Source: APT Webstudy
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