Dementia: Expert discusses the signs and symptoms
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Memory might become slightly less reliable as you get older, and you could become more forgetful, but how can you tell if you have Alzheimer’s disease? Issues with your hearing could be a telling symptom. The Alzheimer’s Society stated: “People with hearing loss are more likely to develop dementia.” Current research hasn’t uncovered why this is, but one universal sign for hearing loss and dementia is that the person affected struggles to follow a conversation.
The charity encouraged people to have regular hearing tests, which are available for free in Boots.
If a person can suddenly follow a conversation once wearing a tailored hearing aid, then they can sigh a breath of relief.
However, even with a correct hearing aid in, if it’s hard to follow a conversation, dementia could be the cause.
The Alzheimer’s Association pointed out the key difference between normal memory loss and the mental decline associated with dementia.
One of the earliest warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease is forgetting recently learned information.
It can also includes forgetting memorable dates, or increasingly needing to rely on memory aids, such as reminder notes.
This is different from typical age-related memory changes, which may involve forgetting appointments but remembering them later.
People with dementia may experience challenges in planning or solving problems.
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To illustrate, Alzheimer’s disease may cause difficulty for a person trying to follow a familiar recipe.
Other familiar tasks could become more arduous, such as organising a shopping list, driving to the local supermarket, or remembering the rules of a favourite board game.
People with this condition may also lose track of the date, time, and what season we’re in, such as mistaking spring for winter.
Other symptoms include:
- Decreased judgment
- Misplacing things and inability to trace steps
- Withdrawal from social activities
- Changes in mood and personality
- New problems with words in speaking or writing
- Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships
Can I prevent Alzheimer’s?
Alzheimer’s Research UK point out that lifestyle factors can play a role in the development of the disease.
A landmark report by the Lancet Commission estimated that around 35 percent of dementia cases could be prevented if nine risk factors were eliminated.
These were:
- Hearing loss
- Low education
- Smoking
- Depression
- Lack of physical activity
Smoking, hearing loss in mid-life, and low education in early life are considered the “top three risk factors” for dementia.
“There’s no guarantee that someone who avoids all of these risk factors will definitely not develop dementia,” the researchers noted.
“But evidence suggests people may reduce their risk by doing so.”
One key piece of information you can elicit from this research is that smoking is an avoidable risk factor for dementia.
- Social isolation
- High blood pressure
- Obesity
- Diabetes
A huge 65 percent of risk factors for dementia is attributed to sex, age and DNA.
Smoking, hearing loss in mid-life, and low education in early life are considered the “top three risk factors” for dementia.
“There’s no guarantee that someone who avoids all of these risk factors will definitely not develop dementia,” the researchers noted.
“But evidence suggests people may reduce their risk by doing so.”
One key piece of information you can elicit from this research is that smoking is an avoidable risk factor for dementia.
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