USA2 SPOTLIGHT

A February 25, 2019 UsAgainstAlzheimer’s blog post by AfricanAmericansAgainstAlzheimer’s lead Stephanie Monroe and LatinosAgainstAlzheimer’s lead Jason Resendez highlighted the intersection between brain health, heart health and health disparities for Heart Health Month. According to the post, “From a young age, we are actively taught to treat our hearts as organs that require exercise, healthy living, and a healthy diet to remain strong… So, when it comes to disease prevention and healthy living, why don’t we think of our brain like we do our heart?… As we explore the connections between our brain and heart, we must consider the barriers that exist in many communities to quality care, research, and prevention resources. These barriers can include lack of access to healthy food, clean water, exercise, and control of other diseases like diabetes.”  

MUST READS

According to a February 25, 2019 Forbes article, researchers have obtained the first PET scan documented case of improvement in brain metabolism in Alzheimer’s disease when treated with hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). “PET imaging is used around the world as a biomarker in oncology and cardiology to assay responses to therapy. We now have an irrefutable biomarker system that this intervention has promise where no other real hope for recovery of dementia has ever existed before,” said study co-lead Dr. Edward Fogarty. 

MUST WATCH

A February 25, 2019 WVLT Sports video featured Michelle Marciniak, who played for legendary basketball coach Pat Summitt on her 1996 championship team. Summitt, who died from Alzheimer’s disease, became an advocate post-diagnosis. Marciniak participates in the annual “Pedal For Alzheimer’s” fundraising bike ride, pedaling 1,098 miles in honor of Summitt’s recordbreaking 1,098 wins. According to Marciniak about what Pat would say, “I want you to do something about it. I want you to go out and actually do something about how we can find a cure. And that was her mentality… she hated when you just talked. She was like, ‘go, do it, show me.’ And that was Pat Summitt.” Pat was an honorary WomenAgainstAlzheimer’s founder. 

RESEARCH AND SCIENCE

A February 24, 2019 Iowa State Daily article looked at the work of food science and human nutrition researcher Dr. Auriel Willette, examining the link between the Cholecystokinin (CCK) protein and Alzheimer’s disease. Willette found that higher CCK levels decrease the likelihood of mild cognitive impairment by as much as 65 percent. According to Willette, “What really sucks is that the people who have, traditionally speaking, the most trouble being able to have health care or afford it, or who then encounter discrimination, they are more likely to develop disease. From the economic side, people of lower socioeconomic status — I can speak from experience — they’re just under more chronic stress. And all of that, leads to an increase risk to Alzheimer’s disease.”

HUMAN INTEREST

A February 24, 2019 The Irish Sun article spotlighted Dame Barbara Windsor’s husband, Scott Mitchell, who is running the London Marathon with Windsor’s EastEnders co-stars, “Barbara's Revolutionaries,” to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. According to Mitchell, “We both know it will be too late for Barbara but she still wants to do what she can to help find a cure. We both do.” 

EVENTS AND RESOURCES

Join the National Alliance for Caregiving’s “Taking Action: A 50-State Strategy for Family Caregiving” event in New Orleans on April 16, 2019. The event will examine what components are needed to create a 50-state strategy to support America’s family caregivers. Register here.