Dementia education

I've undertaken two new things to learn more about Alzheimer's:

A few days ago I attended a seminar by Dr. Serge Gauthier about dementia which was part of a major geriatric conference in Vancouver. Dr. Gauthier is the preeminent dementia researcher in Canada, if not the world. Here are some random interesting things I learned from the seminar:

• Anything that is bad for your heart is bad for your brain -- obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure increase the risk of Alzheimer's.
• Everyone over 90 yrs of age has Alzheimer's plaques in the brain. 50% of those over 90 yrs have Alzheimer's symptoms.
• Every 7 additional years of schooling can stave off dementia an additional 5 years.
• 15% of the population carries the Alzheimer's gene (APOE-4) from one parent, 3% carry it from both.
• 1 glass of red wine per day (combined with a healthy lifestyle) can protect you from dementia-related brain diseases!
• Head injuries increase the risk of dementia in later life.
• The beneficial Omega fatty acids found in fish are destroyed once the fish is cooked, therefore, sashimi is preferable.
  

I've also started a class about dementia through the Alzheimer's Society. It's once a week for 4 weeks. Today's class was fairly introductory and I already knew a lot of the information presented, but here are a few new things I learned:

• Those of East Indian heritage are far less likely to get Alzheimer's than any other ethnic group. Although no formal studies have been done, it is believed that the natural anti-inflammatory qualities of the spices used in Indian food (eg: turmeric) help protect the brain.
• 70,000 people in BC currently have dementia. 10,000 of these are under age 65 (considered "early-onset"). 14,000 new cases are diagnosed each year.