Is There a Link Between Dementia and Tooth Loss?

There was some interesting research done in London this past year in whihc no deinitive answers were found, but raised several new and rather complex questions on the issue of dementia and it’s causes.  However, this may again call for a deeper understanding of the importance fitness and nutrition factors in trying to prevent dementia.

Here is a snip from the article as reported on Scientific American.com:

By Anne Harding

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Older people who have lost their teeth are at more than three-fold greater risk of memory problems and dementia, UK researchers report.

“This study essentially raises questions rather than answering them,” Dr. Robert Stewart of Kings College London, the study’s lead author, told Reuters Health. “The measurements were taken at the same time, so we are not able to say what caused what.”

It’s possible that people with cognitive impairment simply take worse care of their teeth, he added, but there are also mechanisms by which poor dental health itself could harm the brain. “One message still stands regardless of what caused what,” he said. “Particular attention may need to be paid to the health and nutrition of people with cognitive impairment because they may also have dental problems.”

You can read the entire article by clicking here.

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Living With Alzheimer’s: Daily Activity Options

I have always been amazed at the effect Alzheimer’s and dementia have on people.  Many are able to still function within the role of daily activities, but are lacking the context within which those activities exist.  I found this most interesting when I first visited a memory care unit of an assisted living facility in Bingham Farms, Michigan.  There was one section of the building’s courtyard where there sat a pile of unfolded clothes, a clothes basket, and a bench.  The sign sitting nearby on a table read PLEASE FOLD THESE CLOTHES.  Moments later a beautiful silver-haired women with advanced dementia strolled into the room, sat down, and began to hum to herself while she folded the clothes and placed them in the basket.  She took her time, making sure each item was folded nicely, and placed them gingerly into the basket.  When all the clothes were done, she rose to leave, greeted me with a smile, and continued her walk.

A few minutes later a facility employee came by, dumped the clothes back onto the bench, and tussled them with her hands.  She, too, left the room greeting me with a smile.  I, to be honest, was dumbfounded.  Why on earth wold she do that right after the nice old lady folded all of the clothes?

Well, I am smarter now, and understand that when dealing with dementia, repetitive activities can actually be a soothing and comforting way to keep one with dementia etertained and free from boredom.  Sure enough, just a few minutes later, the nice old lady with the silver hair returned and folded the clothes, as if it was something new and exciting for her to do.  In a way, I’m sure she felt important in the fact that she was able to accomplish something that day.  Even if it was the same thing, over and over, it was something new and exciting for her each and every time.

What other activities can we find for the with dementia to engage each day?

The following activities are suggested in the book, Practical Guide for Caregivers:

Art
Clay: Use modeling clay and make objects or animals.

Water colors or crayons: Free-style water-color/crayons

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Diagnosis: Alzheimer’s Disease; Risk Factors & Treatment Options

Is it possible to pin-point Alzheimer’s disease?  The answer, I’m afraid, is no.  In fact, the only way a person can truly be diagnosed with the disease is during an autopsy.  So how can we better target the potential that a person actually has Alzheimer’s?  The picture below shows what a PET scan can show in terms of the brain’s activity.  Even though this is still not the perfect way to determine if a person has Alzheimer’s, it is a definite manner by which a neurologist can determine if a medication can be used to help maintain helathy brain activity.

So what are some of the advancements being made today in the study, treatment, and preention of Alzheimer’s and dementia?  The following article was published in the Summer issue of Inspire Magazine.  Written by Dr. Peter Lichtenberg of Wayne State Univeristy, it offers a glimpse into what advances are being made on this topic.

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Understanding Risk Factors for Alzheimer’s Disease and New Approaches to Care

by Peter A. Lichtenberg, Ph.D., ABPP, Director, Institute of GerontologyProfessor of Psychology at Wayne State University        

Alzheimer’s disease has become a household word, affecting over five million Americans and feared by millions more.  The MetLife Foundation reported in a 2006 study that after cancer, Alzheimer’s is the second most feared disease among both middle-aged and older Americans.  Despite its prevalence and the increasing attention to it by the public and healthcare professionals, Alzheimer’s disease remains a difficult disease for families and general health practitioners to recognize and treat.          

In 2006, the Michigan Dementia Coalition conducted a statewide behavioral surveillance survey about memory loss.  One of the survey’s most striking results was the lack of public awareness about where to get help for Alzheimer’s disease.  The majority of those surveyed (60%) said they would seek help from their family doctor.  The next most popular response was searching the Internet for information (10%).  Sadly, only 1% had heard of the Alzheimer’s Association or would contact them for information, indicating a large gap between the public’s fear of Alzheimer’s disease and their actual knowledge about it and its treatment.       

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90% of Seniors Want to Age At Home: Growing Need for At-Home Elder Care

Today in the New York Times, a story featured the plight of one New York elder couple insisting on staying at home.  It is proof that American seniors, despite concerns with general and mental health, want to be where they are most comfortable: in their homes.  A portion of the article reads as follows:

“Mr. Allen has been hobbled since he fractured his spine in a fall down the stairs, and expects to lose his driver’s license when it comes up for renewal when he turns 85. Mrs. Allen recently broke four ribs getting out of bed. Neither can climb a ladder to change a light bulb, or crouch under the kitchen sink to fix a leak. Stores and public transportation are an uncomfortable hike.

So the Allens have banded together with their neighbors, who are equally determined to avoid being forced from their homes by dependence. Along with more than 100 communities nationwide — a dozen of them here in Washington and its suburbs — they are part of a movement to make neighborhoods comfortable places to grow old, both for elderly men and women in need of help but not ready for assisted living, and for baby boomers anticipating the future.

‘We are totally dependent on ourselves,’ Mr. Allen said. ‘But I want to live in a mixed community, not just with the elderly. And as long as we can do it here, that’s what we want.’

The Allens’ wish to live out their lives in familiar surroundings, shared by almost nine in 10 Americans over age 60, according to numerous polls, may soon become a reality. Their group has registered as a nonprofit association, developed a business plan based on membership dues and begun lining up providers of transportation, home repair, companionship, daily security check-ins and other services to meet their needs at home for as long as possible.

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Senior Con Games: Local Senior Care Company and Fraud Experts Say the Stakes are High when Criminals Target Older Adults

While con games have changed with the times, the practice of defrauding consumers of all ages is nothing new.   When the target is a senior, however, the stakes have never been higher, say senior care experts.  Senior scams are costing older adults their life savings, their homes and even their lives.  

From investment fraud to lottery and sweepstakes scams to home improvement schemes, seniors often are sitting ducks for a criminal looking to make fast cash.  According to 2005 statistics from the National Fraud Information Center, 22 percent of telemarketing scam complaints were logged by those over the age of 70, which represents the highest percentage of any demographic group that year.

What makes older adults so vulnerable to tricksters, scammers and con criminals?  It appears that physical and psychological needs are at the heart of this issue, according to research and anecdotes from senior experts.

“Seniors often worry they will outlive their money and are concerned that they might not be able to continue to live the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed,” said Nancy Wasilk from the Home Instead Senior Care^® offices serving North and Southwest Oakland County.  “That’s among the concerns that we’ve heard seniors express and one reason we believe they are so vulnerable to scams,” she added.  “Some may get caught up in these schemes because they are looking for ways to improve their financial situations.”

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Your Senior Advisor: Negativity Can Make Seniors Forgetful, Study Says

By Shannon Wygant, Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) and owner of the Waterford and Walled Lake, Michigan franchises of Home Instead Senior Care. 

Q.     My 80-year-old mother who lives alone sometimes gets herself so worked up over things that suddenly she can’t remember anything and then become nearly incapacitated.  Have you ever heard of such a behavior? 

Yes, we have heard of such a condition, and research also confirms its existence.  A study earlier this year from Rush University Medical Center found that people who are easily distressed and have more negative emotions are more likely to develop memory problems than more easygoing people. 

In commenting about the study, author Robert S. Wilson, PhD.,  a neuropsychologist at Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center, said:  “People differ in how they tend to experience and deal with negative emotions and psychological distress, and the way people respond tends to stay the same throughout their adult lives. 

“These findings suggest that, over a lifetime, chronic experience of stress affects the area of the brain that governs stress response. Unfortunately, that part of the brain also regulates memory.”  An earlier study by Wilson and his colleagues showed that people who are easily distressed also are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than more easygoing people.  

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Press Conference and Reception for Artist with Alzheimer’s Disease: Inspire Magazine

Local Artist with Alzheimer’s Has Work Featured on Cover of Magazine:

Press Conference and Reception Draws Attention to

Medical Advances in Alzheimer’s Treatment

and Available Resources for Those Living with Alzheimer’s

Ray Maloney is a gifted teacher, a self-taught artist, and a loving husband and father.  That all changed in 1998 when Ray was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

            As his memory began to fade, so did his ability to teach and create.  However, his legacy of hope continues on today.  After losing the capacity to create art with paints and acrylics, he moved to complex collages of carefully selected magazine clippings to create beautiful pieces of art.  One of his first collages, Safe Haven, was then described by him as his mind breaking up into pieces and his only safe place was his home as depicted by the circle in the lower left side of his collage.

            Ray’s first magazine collage piece, has been chosen to grace the cover of Inspire Magazine’s summer issue dealing with Alzheimer’s disease.  The periodical, published by the Inspire Senior Network, is written entirely by regional medical experts dealing with one specific senior-related topic each quarter.

            The magazine will be released at a press conference on Tuesday, August 14, 2007 at Arden Courts of Bingham Farms, (24005 W 13 Mile Rd, Bingham Farms, MI, (248) 644-8100).  The press conference will begin promptly at 3:20 p.m., and will be followed by a reception for Ray and Jan Maloney. Valet parking will be available.

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Summer Care Conference: Elder Abuse and Alzheimer’s Disease (8.16.07)

Home Instead Senior Care, partnering with the Community Counseling Center of Novi, the Alzheimer’s Association, and the Lourdes Campus, presents its summer care conference.  The focus will be on elder abuse and Alzheimer’s Disease.

The care conference will be held on Thursday, August 17, 2007 beginning at 2 p.m. and will last no more than two hours.  It will be held in the chapel at the Lourdes Campus Nursing Home, located at 2300 Watkins Lake Road in Waterford.  Attendees should use the Nursing Home entrance.

There is no cost to attend, though pre-registration is required and is limited to 50 attendees.

 

“Who should attend?  Anyone who desires to know how they can better care for the senior population,” says Nancy Wasilk, Community Service Representative for the Waterford office of Home Instead Senior Care.  “This care conference will be especially relevant for caregivers and social workers as they are actively involved in protecting our seniors and their livelihood.”

   

Wasilk adds that the list of possible attendees whom could benefit from the conference may include caregivers, social workers, nurses, financial institution managers, chaplains, facility managers, and children or relatives of seniors who may be at risk for abuse or exploitation.

Networking opportunities will be available after the presentations.  Refreshments will be served and provided by Lourdes.

To reserve your seat, call 248-674-2241, and press 0 for the operator.  Remember – seating is limited. Reserve your space soon.

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Use It Or Lose It: Local Company Helps Keep Seniors’ Minds on the Move

When it comes to how the mind ages, research is increasingly giving new meaning to the popular phrase “use it or lose it,” said Bert Copple, director of community relations of the Home Instead Senior Care^® franchise offices in Waterford and Walled Lake, Michigan. “We know that mind games keep many aging minds young and vital,” said Copple. 

So what are today’s seniors doing to keep mentally fit?  Many have said goodbye to traditional games such as bingo.  They’re gravitating more to video-game technology and group activities such as Scrabble^® and bridge tournaments.  According to the latest studies, it all helps.  Researchers in a study published just last year in Psychological Medicine from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, found that individuals with high brain reserve—which looks at the roles of education, occupational complexity, and mentally stimulating pursuits in preventing cognitive decline—have a 46-percent decreased risk of dementia than those with low brain reserve.  The study found that it is, in fact, a case of “use it or lose it,” and pointed out that even a late-life surge in mental activity can stave off the effects of this terrible disease. However, one deterrent for many seniors who would like to stay mentally active is lack of companionship—particularly for those older adults who live alone. 

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