Alzheimers Disease

Submitted by:

John Paulene Elarcosa

Denise Louise Po

BS Nursing

English 101

Submitted to: Dr. Jan Dolly Grace Deita

BS Nursing-1A

English 101

John Paulene Elarcosa

Denise Louise Po

Alzheimers Disease

Alzheimer's disease is a neurological disorder in which the death of

brain cells causes memory loss and cognitive decline. A
neurodegenerative type of dementia, the disease starts mild and gets
progressively worse. Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of
dementia. The term "dementia" describes a loss of mental ability associated
with gradual death of brain cells

The causes of Alzheimers Disease are: age is the single most significant factor
in the development of Alzheimer's disease. The genes you inherit from your
parents can contribute to your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, although
the actual increase in risk is small if you have a close family member with the
condition. People with Down's syndrome are at a higher risk of developing
Alzheimer's disease. This is because the genetic fault that causes Down's
syndrome can also cause amyloid plaques to build up in the brain over time,
which can lead to Alzheimer's disease in some people. Whiplash and head
injuries People who have had a severe head injury or severe whiplash (a neck
injury caused by a sudden movement of the head) have been found to be at
higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.Research shows that several
lifestyle factors and conditions associated with cardiovascular disease can
increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. These include: smoking obesity
diabetes high blood pressure high cholesterol

Some things are more commonly associated with Alzheimer's disease - not seen
so often in people without the disorder. These factors may therefore have some
direct connection. Some are preventable or modifiable factors (for example,
reducing the risk of diabetes or heart disease may in turn cut the risk of
dementia). If researchers gain more understanding of the risk factors, or
scientifically prove any "cause" relationships for Alzheimer's, this could help to
find ways to prevent it or develop treatments. There are unavoidable risk factors,
these are: Age, the disorder is more likely in older people, and a greater
proportion of over-85-year-old have it than of over-65. Also, having Alzheimer's in
the family is associated with higher risk. This is the second biggest risk factor
after age. Having a certain gene (the apolipoprotein E or APOE gene) puts a
person, depending on their specific genetics, at three to eight times more risk
than a person without the gene. Numerous other genes have been found to be
associated with Alzheimer's disease.

In The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers say their findings suggest sleeping

in the lateral, or side position - as compared with sleeping on one's back or
stomach - appears to help the brain remove waste products more effectively and
may thus reduce the chance of developing neurodegenerative diseases.
Increasingly, research is showing that sleep is important for brain health. Studies
suggest that the brain is better at removing waste products when asleep than
awake. And researchers are also discovering that poor sleep is linked to an
increased risk of dementia. So, if the brain removes waste better during sleep,
then does body posture during sleep make any difference? This was the question
the team, led by Helene Benveniste, a professor of anesthesiology at Stony
Brook University, NY, set out to investigate.
 There are no disease-modifying drugs available for Alzheimer's disease
but some options may reduce its symptoms and help improve quality of life.
There are four drugs in a class called cholinesterase inhibitor approved for
symptomatic relief in the US: Donepezil (brand name Aricept) Alantamine
(Reminyl) Rivastigmine (Exelon) Tacrine (Cognex) A different kind of drug,
memantine (Namenda), an NMDA receptor antagonist, may also be used,
alone or in combination with a cholinesterase inhibitor. Other therapy As
with other types of dementia and neurodegenerative disease, a major part
of therapy for patients with Alzheimer's comes from the support given by
healthcare workers to provide dementia quality-of-life care, which becomes
more important as needs increase with declining independence.

We can lower our risk from getting Alzheimer's by: Foods that are high in omega-
3 fatty acids and vitamins C, B, D, E improve mental ability. Exercise regularly
during middle age are less likely to develop dementia later on. Writing, reading
and engaging in brain-stimulating activities help preserve memory in old age. The
amount of sleep people get may later influence memory function and Alzheimer's
risk. Heavy smoking raises Alzheimer's risk by 157% and vascular dementia by
172%, a study carried out by experts at Kaiser Permanente and published in
Archives of Internal Medicine (October 2010) found. The authors emphasized
that the "heavy smoking" relates to when it occurs in midlife.

In conclusion, we can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's or dementia by:

Not smoking Maintaining a healthy body weight. Eating a well-balanced diet that
includes plenty of fruit and vegetables.Keeping your mind active.Doing regular
physical exercise.Get ting plenty of good quality sleep. Maintaining healthy blood
cholesterol levels. Lastly, controlling our blood pressure.