AstridGuide – Dementia & Alzheimer Guide

Dementia & Alzheimer’s

Dementia is a condition that primarily affects one’s cognitive abilities. It is common in older people and the most common symptom is memory loss. Dementia has no specified risk factors as discovered by scientists. However, recent studies link the disease to various factors like age, family history, head injuries and stroke risk factors:

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Age: Increasing age is often a risk factor for many maladies. Dementia is one of the first in the list. This is because, as people grow older, they tend to have a worse memory as they had when they were younger. Also, the body has lower disease resisting capability when it gets older, and also fills cuts or injuries slower than usual.

Dementia has been associated with old age and indeed, most cases of Dementia are with older people. Though there are some inflicted at a young age, but this occurrence rarely happens.

Family History: Family history is a very important factor. If a family member has had a Dementia-related or Dementia-type disease, a person is much more susceptible to get the disease.

Stroke risks: This is another serious condition. This happens when a part of the brain suddenly has a different blood supply from previously. This happens when a blood supply vein or artery bursts and the brain receives a lower supply of blood. This change in the supply of blood can damage the brain with varying intensities. It may then lead to one type of Dementia.

Head Injuries: This is another high risk factor. When a person has a head injury, any part of the brain may be affected and lead to Dementia. Otherwise, an injury can also lead to the rupturing of an artery or vein, therefore leading to stroke.

As much as it has been proved, Dementia can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. It may occur no matter how much we protect ourselves. But knowing these risk factors will help keep one from acquiring this condition.

As the adage goes, “prevention is better than cure”. So, even if you cannot remove the risks, you can try to minimize them as much as possible.