MUST READS

A June 19, 2019 Medical Xpress article looked at a new study, based on analysis of 60,000 participants in MindCrowd, an online word-pair memory test, suggesting people with elevated risk of developing Alzheimer's disease due to family history may demonstrate memory performance changes as early as their 20s. This effect was shown across every age group, up to age 65. According to lead study author Dr. Joshua S. Talboom, “This study supports recommendations underscoring the importance of living a healthy lifestyle and properly treating disease states such as diabetes. Our findings specifically highlight the positive effects of such interventions for those with a family history risk of Alzheimer's, opening the door to the development of more targeted risk-reduction approaches to combat the disease.”

A June 17, 2019 Forbes “Coaches Council” piece by Karen J. Hardwick, MDiv., MSW relied on her own experiences with Alzheimer’s to outline five mantras, from the “frontlines of memory care,” that may help in the business world. According to Hardwick, “I believe it's critical for leaders to do the basics and strengthen their foundation: sleeping enough, eating healthy foods, drinking water, having a spiritual practice that provides groundedness and being surrounded by people who nourish you. How might your career thrive if you built these cornerstones of positive energy and self-care and stopped giving energy to anything else? Think about what fuels you and makes you a better leader — and make time for it while also being mindful of how your self-care impacts and inspires those around you.”

RESEARCH AND SCIENCE

A June 17, 2019 Science Daily release highlighted new research from Iowa State University on the antioxidant SOD1 (superoxide dismutase), which improves cognition by fighting off free radicals that cause oxidative damage in the brain, but weakens in the presence of high levels of tau, a major hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. They suspect it is fighting to counteract negative effects of tau, but eventually loses the battle. “The disease might begin or progress partly because antioxidants in our brain stop working effectively when tau levels increase. It's similar to a burning building. You can pump as much water as possible onto the fire, but once it's spreading out of control, no amount of water is going to stop it,” said Assistant Professor Ariel Willette, who oversaw the research.

MUST WATCH

A June 17, 2019 ABC 7 Eyewitness News broadcast segment spoke with Dr. Matt Grilli of the University of Arizona's Human Memory Lab about research into classifying people with late-stage Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers created six groups, with significant distinctions in each, relating to memory, language and genetics. “We know that early diagnosis of this disease is really key for trying to treat the symptoms, for helping with providing resources to patients and their families,” said Dr. Grilli.

BRAIN HEALTH

A June 17, 2019 EurekAlert! release spotlighted new research from the University of California, Berkeley which found that sleep patterns can predict the accumulation of tau proteins later in life. According to the article, “…A decrease in slow oscillations/sleep spindle synchronization was associated with higher tau, while reduced slow-wave-activity amplitude was associated with higher β-amyloid levels. The researchers also found that a decrease in sleep quantity throughout aging, from the 50s through 70s, was associated with higher levels of β-amyloid and tau later in life. This means that changes in brain activity during sleep and sleep quantity during these time frames could serve as a warning sign for Alzheimer's disease, allowing for early preventive care.” Also covered by MedPage Today.