Alzheimers 'hits the educated faster'

Herald Sun ^ | 23 February 2006

[Aussie Dasher]

THE rate of mental decline seen within patients with Alzheimer's disease is directly related to the educational level of the affected individual, according to a report in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

The new findings are based on a study of 312 patients living in New York who were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and followed for an average of 5.6 years. Up to nine neuropsychological tests were performed on each subject during the course of the study.

Overall, mental agility fell by nine per cent of a standard deviation each year, lead author Dr Nikolaos Scarmeas and colleagues from Columbia University Medical Centre in New York note. For each year of added education, the decline increased by 0.3 per cent.

Memory and executive speed, which includes the ability to adapt to change and organise thoughts, were the primary areas affected by educational level, the report indicates.

Further analysis showed the link between education and mental decline was not influenced by age, mental function at the time of diagnosis, or other factors known to influence brain function, such as depression and vascular disease.

Previous studies have provided evidence high levels of education can delay Alzheimer's disease.

The "cognitive reserve" hypothesis has been put forth to explain the effects of education on Alzheimer's disease, Dr Scarmeas and colleagues said.

This theory, they explain, holds that highly educated individuals have more intellectual reserve so the onset of overt Alzheimer's disease symptoms is delayed.

However, once symptoms become apparent, more damage has accumulated than in less educated brains, so the subsequent decline in mental function is more rapid.

[ronnied]

I wonder how the learned investigators of this study reacted to the results they uncovered.




thats gooood...

[Malesherbes]

312 seems to me to be a small sample from which to draw any sweeping conclusions.

[Lady Jag]

I'm sorry your mom has it. With friends, I've been close to it twice. Both People reacted differently, one being easier than the other, but it still doesn't remove the sadness and the tragedy. Big prayers for you and your mom, al.

[Revolting cat!]

Quick people, burn all your high degrees!

[IamConservative]

I knew that Political Science course was rotting my brain.

[nonsporting]

Universities. That explains it; they're pseudo-educated.

I'd to see this broken down by profession/degrees held.

Arnold Denker, the Dean of American Chess, died last year at the age of 90. He was often quoted as saying that Chess was a balm against Alzheimers.

There are quite a few rather aged GM's, although they've lost some of their playing strength (200 rating points: 2700->2500)--Smyslov, Gligoric, Larsen. Victor Korchnoi (75) is still giving the youngsters grief.

[wyattearp]

Ruh-roh! Sorry, this sounds more like Homer Simpson.

Naw, man, that's Astro! (The Jetson's dog).

[thoughtomator]

Bingo. When they say "education", they don't mean education, they mean time served in the re-education camps.

[SpaceBar]

I often wonder about the conclusions of causality of such studies. Perhaps educated people are just more likely to find themselves in an office environment and therefore to use antiperspirant which usually contains various salts of aluminum?

[al baby]

no no shes still alive just not the same sorry thats what i ment

[derllak]

I think you and I have nothing to worry about! (oppisite?!?)
I hope you didn't do that on purpose or you're in big trouble!

[MRobert]

My FIL has it and it is really sad. There are different types. His began with small strokes in the brain over time and it is called dementia, but it all becomes Alzheimer's in the end.

All sorts of interesting theories are out there why it seems to be on the rise in the United States--everything from diet to presence of a virus. On an AD support board I visit, it is amazing how many of those who developed the disease also had pneumonia at some stage in their lives. I think the theory is like that of chicken pox, which can show up as shingles later in life. Whatever it is, I told my sons to shoot me if I ever develop it.

[Lady Jag]

Add hobbies, interests and vices to that and we've got a recipe.

I'm at the age where we're sending yet another generation of family through college (a conservative family in MA) and many profs seem to be following the same ol' rule, get tenure and "retire while working", liberals and give-mes to the core; those minds have to be among the fastest sinkers.

[staytrue]

There is an episode of Rocky and Bulwinkle that is relevant here.

In it, Boris zaps moose and squirrel with a stupid gun. Rocky goes stupid, but Bulwinkle is unaffected.

Natasha asks "why ray gun not work on moose".

Boris replies" ray gun affects the brain. with moose, no brain, no effect"

Here, Alzheimers affects the brain. Little brain, little effect.

[WV Mountain Mama]

It totally sucks, only to be made worse by seeing them in the nursing home and just a shell. My grandma had it as well as a couple of her sisters. My grandma and pap pap were poor, but she always had her hair done and a dress on and looked neat. My mom and I think that if we would have shown her a picture of what she would become, she would have ended it before it happened. And she was as religious a person as anyone ever was. I was visiting my folks a couple of weeks ago and watched a home video that my dad found. I was fine until I saw my grandparents healthy and happy. I started bawling terribly, it just caught me totally off-guard. My pap's been gone for 22 years and my grandma died 6 years ago, but was unable to "function" on her own for 8 years before that.

Prayers for your mom and for your family as you all go through this.

[LesbianThespianGymnasticMidget]

Efforts to find effective treatments for Alzheimer's after-the-fact have so far been disappointing. Age is the primary risk factor for Alzheimer's. The baby boom is approaching its golden years. Indeed, much of the concern about the solvency of governmental social safety nets is founded on estimates of the costs of caring for baby boomers, assuming that they develop Alzheimer's in the same proportions as earlier generations.

One study ("Leisure Activities and the Risk of Dementia in the Elderly," New England Journal of Medicine [8]) found that people who played chess on a regular basis went on to get Alzheimer's at a substantially lower rate than the general population. The chess relationship was stronger than any other factor, including dancing and solving crossword puzzles, both of which were also shown to be inversely proportional to getting Alzheimer's disease.

In a number of retrospective studies, regular physical exercise has appeared to be inversely related to the development of Alzheimer’s. The Alzheimer's risk of those exercising regularly was half that of the least active. This research is consistent with the observation that virtually all measures designed to promote cardiac fitness and reduce stroke risk also seem to reduce Alzheimer's risk. However in one study, dance appeared to be the only exercise effective in reducing risk. One explanation is that dancing requires the use of complex mental skills such as performing correct steps while at the same time keeping track of the music. The presence of cardiovascular risk factors -- diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and smoking -- in middle age (ages 40 to 44) was found very strongly associated with late-life dementia (Neurology 2005;64:277-281. PMID 15668425).

Some studies have indicated that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen and aspirin may delay the onset, and lower the ultimate risk, of Alzheimer’s disease. According to population studies, low but consistent daily NSAID used over a period of years such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) seems to slow the progress of Alzheimer's. It seems that NSAIDs may affect the onset of the disease but is of little use for treating it once it has progressed to early or full-blown Alzheimer's.

It should be noted that some drugs such as acetaminophen, naproxen, and COX-2 inhibitors, such as celebrex and vioxx, were found to have no demonstrated benefit (and some evidence of cardiac harm). This ineffectiveness and the increase in adverse cardiac events associated with these agents was reported in various studies in 2004, and highlights the key role of ibuprofen in the original studies showing moderated risk associated with NSAID use (PMID 15720180).

A study (Archives of Neurology 2004; 61:82-88. PMID 14732624) has reported that the combination of vitamins E and C might, over time, sharply reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Marked reduction (up to 80% risk reduction) was achieved after a period of more than five years, but only if dosage was 400 i.u. per day of vitamin E plus 500 mg or more per day of vitamin C. Lesser amounts, such as those found in multivitamin pills, appeared markedly less effective. Large doses of vitamin E without vitamin C had only a mild effect, while large doses of vitamin C without vitamin E had no benefit. However in one small study, 2000 i.u. per day of vitamin E did appear to delay the progression of early Alzheimer’s by several months. Other evidence suggests that vitamin E becomes a damaging pro-oxidant if given in isolation (without other antioxidants). Vitamin E can be recharged after absorbing a free radical by another antioxidant such as vitamin C or Alpha-lipoic acid. Some studies suggest that a ratio of at least 1000 mg of vitamin C to 400 i.u. of vitamin E is ideal. Recent studies suggest that the most common forms of E sold in supplements, the dl-alpha or d-alpha tocopherol form, are of little value, and that the gamma form of vitamin E, or a mixture of all the tocopherols and tocotrienols that collectively make up vitamin E from food, provide the most benefit. Vitamin E is markedly less effective unless taken with oil.

Improved nutritional status of the B vitamin folic acid was found to reduce Alzheimer's incidence in a study of an order of nuns, many of whom volunteered to have their mental status assessed and donated their brains for study after death. The "Nun's study" also revealed nuns who, in life, showed little or no dementia, but upon autopsy were found to have extensive Alzheimer’s plaques. The unimpaired nuns’ brains were free of evidence of stroke, including micro-strokes. Nuns whose brains revealed both plaques and stroke damage, however, were severely impaired in functioning while alive. Thus avoidance of risk factors for stroke may be a key element in preventing final progression to being disabled by Alzheimer's dementia. The discovery of the co-founding role of stroke supports other research showing that quitting smoking, weight reduction, and avoidance of diabetes all reduce Alzheimer's risk. Diabetes greatly increases Alzheimer's risk, and one factor at work may be that the enzyme charged with removing excess insulin from the blood, the Insulin Degrading Enzyme (IDE), also has the responsibility for removing Beta-amyloid plaques from the brain. Perhaps the excess insulin involved in the pre-diabetic metabolic syndrome, as well as insulin used to treat existing diabetes, may demand more IDE than the body is able to produce, leaving none to remove accumulating beta amyloid plaques from the brain.

Some evidence suggests that Alzheimer's risk may also be reduced by inclusion of certain kinds of fish in the weekly diet. Those that contain Omega-3 fatty acids are thought to most effective.

The natural chemical curcumin, found at 5% concentration in the spice turmeric, reduces Alzheimer's incidence in a mouse model and actually dissolves human senile plaques (beta amyloid) in the test tube (PMID 15590663). These factors suggest that inclusion of a bit of turmeric or curry spice in the diet may provide preventive value. Near 100% curcumin extract capsules are also available. Curcumin is a powerful antioxidant and a powerful anti-inflammatory. In India, where turmeric is commonly consumed in curry spices, Alzheimer's disease afflicts only approximately 1% of the elderly, whereas in the U.S. a much larger percentage are afflicted.

There may be a connection between the cholesterol level inside the brain cells and the deposition of the toxic amyloid plaques which make the brain cells die. In addition to lowering cholesterol, the so-called statins (drugs such as lovastatin, simvastatin, etc.) may have a beneficial role in reducing inflammation. However, retrospective studies into possible protective effects of statin drugs as a means of preventing or delaying Alzheimer’s have been inconclusive; no protective effect was found in one large prospective observational study (Arch Neurol. 2005;62:1047-1051. PMID 16009757).

Prospective studies and well-analyzed retrospective studies show that smoking increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's (Biomed Pharmacother. 2004 Mar;58(2):95-9. PMID 14992790). The increased risk may be substantial (J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2000;68:622-626 (May). PMID 10766894). Cigarettes contain many substances in addition to nicotine, and the increased risks incurred by smokers are not to be confused with the controversial possible slowing of the progression of established Alzheimer's disease by administration of pure medical nicotine.

[GOP_Proud]

< Naw, man, that's Astro! (The Jetson's dog). >


Both wrong. It's Scooby Doo.

[SuziQ]

Yeyp, my Mama was good at 'hiding' it for a while, too, but it eventually caught up with her.

[wyattearp]

Both wrong. It's Scooby Doo.

Nope. One of Astro's most common lines was "Ruh, roh, Rorge", as in "Uh, oh, George". Scooby Doo did say "Ruh, roh", but I believe that Astro's usage of the term predated Scooby's.

[Search4Truth]

I understand. Much is still lost with that dreadful affliction. As I'm sure you are painfully aware of.

May the good Lord be merciful.