(Press-News.org) Over half of all Alzheimer's disease cases could potentially be prevented through lifestyle changes and treatment or prevention of chronic medical conditions, according to a study led by Deborah Barnes, PhD, a mental health researcher at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.
Analyzing data from studies around the world involving hundreds of thousands of participants, Barnes concluded that worldwide, the biggest modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer's disease are, in descending order of magnitude, low education, smoking, physical inactivity, depression, mid-life hypertension, diabetes and mid-life obesity.
In the United States, Barnes found that the biggest modifiable risk factors are physical inactivity, depression, smoking, mid-life hypertension, mid-life obesity, low education and diabetes.
Together, these risk factors are associated with up to 51 percent of Alzheimer's cases worldwide (17.2 million cases) and up to 54 percent of Alzheimer's cases in the United States (2.9 million cases), according to Barnes.
"What's exciting is that this suggests that some very simple lifestyle changes, such as increasing physical activity and quitting smoking, could have a tremendous impact on preventing Alzheimer's and other dementias in the United States and worldwide," said Barnes, who is also an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco.
The study results were presented at the 2011 meeting of the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Paris, France, and published online on July 19, 2011 in Lancet Neurology.
Barnes cautioned that her conclusions are based on the assumption that there is a causal association between each risk factor and Alzheimer's disease. "We are assuming that when you change the risk factor, then you change the risk," Barnes said. "What we need to do now is figure out whether that assumption is correct."
Senior investigator Kristine Yaffe, MD, chief of geriatric psychiatry at SFVAMC, noted that the number of people with Alzheimer's disease is expected to triple over the next 40 years. "It would be extremely significant if we could find out how to prevent even some of those cases," said Yaffe, who is also a professor of psychiatry, neurology and epidemiology at UCSF.
INFORMATION:
The research was supported by funds from the Alzheimer's Association, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, the UCSF School of Medicine and the National Institute on Aging.
SFVAMC has the largest medical research program in the national VA system, with more than 200 research scientists, all of whom are faculty members at UCSF.
UCSF is a leading university dedicated to promoting health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care.
END
InfoTech Solutions for Business (InfoTech) is pleased to announce the establishment of a partnership with Washington, D.C.-based Strategic Marketing Innovations, Inc. (SMI). With this partnership, InfoTech is taking yet another step in growing its exposure in the Federal/Department of Defense arena.
"InfoTech is a leading software house and systems integration company with a history of providing state of the art technology to the Department of Defense. We look forward to working jointly with InfoTech to ensure that InfoTech's products and services are well known ...
To prevent the potential for accidents and costly repairs to aircraft being moved in hangars, Talon Air (www.TalonAirJets.com), a full-service private jet charter and aircraft management company based at Republic Airport (FRG) in Farmingdale, New York, has installed a unique perimeter-warning system in two of its hangars. Using the Redscan laser-scan detectors from Optex (www.optexamerica.com), the system warns pilots and hangar operators when a plane comes within eight feet of the hangar walls.
"Talon Air puts a premium on maintaining clean, safe, and state-of-the-art ...
Teen Drivers More Likely to Talk, Text and Get Into Accidents
The U.S. Department of Transportation is showing no signs of letting up in its extended campaign to make teens aware of the danger that arises from distracted driving. The campaign recently joined forces to conduct a survey with the Consumer Reports National Research Center and found some distressing facts:
-Over 60 percent of drivers under 30 have used cell phones in the last 30 days while driving, and 30 percent texted and drove, according to the survey respondents
-Approximately 70 percent of teens ...
As part of their dedication to charity services, mobile marketing and communications company Txtlocal managed to raised over GBP1000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care using the power of multi-media text messaging.
Txtlocal have been in partnership with Marie Curie since the beginning of the year, and so wanted to support their annual 'Blooming Great Tea Party' where people hold tea parties in aid of the charity. All money raised from tea parties helps Marie Curie Nurses to provide more free care to patients with terminal cancer and other illnesses in their own homes or one ...
topseos.com.au, an independent authority on search vendors has named the Best Web Development Firms in Australia for the month of July 2011. As the importance of having a good website increases, so does the importance of web development. Web development is about tying together all the different functions of a website to have one coherent portal. All the best web developers recognized next to hundreds of other web development services have gone through an evaluation system facilitated by a qualified and experienced team of researchers.
"A good Web Development Company ...
Everyone knows someone who has lost a child. From everyday people to billionaires to celebrities such as John Travolta and Kelly Preston, no one is immune from one of the most heart-wrenching events to befall any human being. Tom O'Grady, author of 'A Gift Is Waiting', demonstrates that even in the darkest of tragedies, a gift can be found.
"I wrote this book," stated Mr. O'Grady, "because, like the parents in the story, I watched a dark future turn bright. The loss of a child and the adoption of a child were two opposing worlds at first, then one amazing ...
Every decent company understands that customers' care should be one of the highest priorities. OvernightEssay.com is a custom writing company, in which nearly all communication between the company workers and the customers is done online. This kind of communication often leads to misunderstandings and different issues. Therefore, at the moment the company is striving to deal with it in the most effective way. In order to do this OvernightEssay.com has launched the research of customer care departments of the major US companies. It is expected that experience of these companies ...
"Greeks are the guardians of the sea. Their long history of saving lives at sea is extraordinary", said Victor Mooney, an invited speaker for the the World Maritime Rescue Congress 2011 (WMRC 2011) and founder of SAAI.
"In addition to sharing my survival on a life raft for 14 days and being rescued by MV Norfolk, it will be an honor to visually share this experience with the delegates and distinguished guests", said Victor Mooney. The MV Norfolk is operated by Diana Shipping of Athens, Greece.
"Furthermore, as the world witnessed the unrest ...
Harlequins Enigma With New Born Album - "Alt" - Released At Nimbit
Alt is born from our 2nd database, where the 1st had conventional genres to offer.
Blood, sweat & tears along the way is a fact that still remains,
Due to pressure in a continuance of a series of hacking. Alt genres include Trip Hop, Industrial, Extreme Techno, Metal & Surprises.
Åge Riisnes did this album mainly on his own, but have help from Katie Leung on "Legends".
Do not compare our octagon volume 2 dance album with alt, that doesn't make sense. We seek new ...
The New World Alliance (TNWA) - APL Co. Pte Ltd (APL), Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) and Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) today announced suspension of the PSW Transpacific service (Pacific Southwest Service).
PSW provided service between Taiwan/South China/Korea and Los Angeles/Oakland and employed five ships with capacity of 4,600~4,700 TEU operated by HMM.
The TNWA will continue to provide services between these locations with other deployments.
The last eastbound sailing of PSW will depart Pusan on 14 July 2011.
About The New World Alliance
TNWA member lines APL Co. ...
