Alzheimer’s is the second most-feared condition, after cancer, yet most adults (62%) said they had little or no knowledge about Alzheimer’s, according to a new report What America Thinks: Metlife Foundation Alzheimer’s survey.

Most adults have done nothing to prepare for the possible onset of the disease, which affects more than 5 million Americans.

Other findings include:

• 44% of adults have family members or friends with Alzheimers
• 23% are very concerned that they may become a caregiver some day for a loved one with Alzheimers
• Only 18% say they have made plans for the possibility of getting Alzheimers and fewer than half have talked to their families about Alzheimers
• 33% say they have considered their care options and 44% say they have designated who would take care of them.
• 21% said they have made financial arrangements in advance of a possible onset of Alzheimers.

Cognitive Reserve

People fluent in more than one language may be protected, to some extent, from the memory ravages of Alzheimers.  Intellectual challenges like learning a language, playing a musical instrument, reading or doing puzzles may help keep the brain sharp for longer.

Researchers at Rotman Research Institute and York University in Toronto, Canada, reviewed the medical records of people diagnosed with probable Alzheimers.

It was found that, in those who spoke two or more languages, the onset of the symptoms was, on average, 4.3 years later than in those with just one language. The findings were published in the medical journal Neurology.

“We are not claiming that bilingualism prevents Alzheimer’s or other dementias,” said study leader Dr Fergus Craik, “but it may contribute to cognitive reserve in the brain, which appears to delay the onset of symptoms.”

The ‘cognitive reserve’ theory is that pursuits like learning a language build up connections between nerve cells in the brain.  When disease destroys parts of the brain, enough healthy pathways remain intact to keep memory and thinking working longer.

The study adds to scientific evidence that suggests lifestyle factors can affect the onset of Alzheimers.  In addition to mental activitiy, regular exercise and a heart-healthy diet are possible ways to keep the mind and memory sharp into old age.

Detecting Alzheimer’s before there are symptoms

Presymptomatic disease detection and treatment is not a new idea – except in the case of Alzheimers.
According to the authors of guidelines and diagnosing Alzheimer’s, “The concept of a pre-clinical phase of disease should not be too foreign. Medical professionals readily acknowledge that cancer can be detected at the stage of ‘carcinoma in situ’ and that hyper cholesterolemia and atherosclerosis can result in narrowing of coronary arteries that is detectable prior to myocardial infarction."

It is widely acknowledged that symptoms are not necessary to diagnose human disease. Type II diabetes, hypertension, renal insufficiency and osteoporosis are frequently detected through laboratory tests and effective treatment can prevent the emergence of symptoms.

We should be open to the idea that Alzheimer’s could one day be diagnosed pre-clinically by the presence of biomarker evidence, which may eventually guide therapy prior to the onset of symptoms.

"We treat people with diabetes, elevated cholesterol, hypertension and a variety of other illnesses – we do not wait for strokes, heart attacks or other long term complications that we know will occur in significant numbers of those affected.” The author wrote.

“Similarly our intension it to use these criteria to better determine an individual’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease."

“This diagnostic research will help us discover the drugs of the future and prepare for the day when we can administer them to those at risk in order to prevent or delay the emergency of symptoms."

The risk of eating meat

Researchers at Columbia University in New York are finding that the more meat we eat, the more likely we are to develop dementia, while researchers at Loma Linda University in California report that meat eaters are more than twice as likely as vegetarians to develop dementia.