Visit Cahaba Ridge for their annual Festival of Trees benefitting ACA, Saturday, December 4, 2 – 4 CT.
Support Alzheimer’s of Central Alabama Annual Care basket drive! ACA volunteers will be delivering baskets filled with household staples and ham, bacon, and sausage. This year we are offering an opportunity to not only warm the hearts of the families on our programs but to warm yourself or a friend with a hand-crafted scarf. Members of the Alabaster Senior Center have knit an amazing collection of scarves. Your donation of $100 or more includes a handmade scarf mailed to you or someone on your Holiday gift list, while supplies last. https://alzca.org/christmasbasket/
Alabama Lifespan Respite webinars: https://alabamarespite.org/
- Anticipatory Grief, December 6, 2 CT
- Caregiving & The Holidays: From Stress to Success, December 9, 10 CT
- Self Love for Caregivers, December 9, 6 CT
- Healing During the Holidays, December 10, 10 CT
- Creating & Expanding Your Caregiving Circle, December 14, 10 CT
- Men as Caregivers, December 18, 10 CT
- Managing Depression During the Holidays, December 20, 6 CT
- Break: Breathe in. Relax. Enjoy life. Appreciate All. Know rest is vital, December 21, 10 CT
- The Working Caregiver, December 27th, 6 CT
The Role of Occupational Therapy in FTD webinar, December 16, 3 CT. Registration (gotowebinar.com)
In-person and zoom Support Groups:
- ACA’s Coffee Talk with Miller & Vance, Tuesday, December 7, 11 – noon CT. Call (205) 871-7970 or mpiggott@alzca.org. Join us on zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86450491838
- CJFS CARES, Mondays at 3 pm, contact Pam Leonard, pam@cjfsbham.org.
- Founders Place at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Tuesday’s at 10 am, contact Susan Logan, susanlogan65@gmail.com
- Pell City, (in person)-1st Tuesday of each month, 11:00 am, Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church, Parish Hall, Cropwell. Contact Bit Thomaston, Ethomaston50@gmail.com
- West Alabama Area Agency on Aging, Caregiver Support Group, Tuesdays, contact Nikki Poe, nikki.poe@westal.org.
- The Oaks on Parkwood, 4th Tuesday’s, 10:00 am, Contact: Karen Glover, karenrglover@bellsouth.net.
- CJFS CARES, Tuesdays, 7:00 pm, contact Pam Leonard, pam@cjfsbham.org.
- Leeds, (in person) 2nd Thursday of each month, 6:30 pm, St. Teresa of the Child Jesus Catholic Church, contact Bit Thomaston, ethomaston50@gmail.com
- United Way Area Agency on Aging of Jefferson County, 3rd Tuesday of each month 11:30-12:30, contact Valarie Lawson, vlawson@uwaaa.org
- Asbury United Methodist Church 1st and 3rd Thursdays at 1:00, contact Maggie Dunaway at mdunaway@asburyonline.org.
Alzheimer’s News
Music stimulates many regions in the brain. In a 2015 study, researchers mapped the regions of the brain that are activated when we hear familiar songs. The researchers identified specific parts of the brain that respond to these songs in healthy humans. Then, they looked at the brains of many people with Alzheimer’s. They found that the areas involved in processing these musical memories experience little atrophy or cell death. This includes the sensory regions that process sound as well as the amygdala, which plays a key role in emotional processing. The amygdala is also important for encoding the emotional qualities of memory. One hypothesis is that these regions of the brain are more resilient to cell death. Why Are Musical Memories the Last to Go in Alzheimer’s? – Being Patient
Researchers in the UK found that walking patterns change before memory and recognition problems start to show. People with Alzheimer’s and Lewy body dementia took slower with shorter steps, were more variable and asymmetric, and spent longer with both feet on the ground compared to control subjects. Importantly, they found that the people with Lewy body dementia had a unique walking pattern that distinguished them from those with Alzheimer’s disease. Their steps were even more variable and asymmetric when they walked. Providing patients with the correct diagnosis is especially important, as certain drugs, such as anti-psychotics, can be harmful to people with dementia with Lewy bodies. How you WALK could be early warning sign of dementia, experts say (thesun.co.uk)
For more than 20 years, nursing home reform advocates have called for new models to replace the traditional, dreaded institutions. This demand was amplified when the pandemic ripped through nursing homes. As of October 10, 2021, more than 138,000 nursing homes residents and more than 2,100 staff members had died from Covid, a number widely believed to be an undercount. If COVID-19 taught us anything, it’s that it’s time to rethink (and redesign) America’s long-term care facilities. Could the Pandemic Transform Nursing Homes? | Next Avenue
A large study from the UK found people with diabetes have overall worse brain and cognitive health based on brain imaging and results from various cognitive tests. People with both diabetes and hypertension have worse overall brain and cognitive health compared with people who have just one of these disorders. Diabetes Plus Hypertension Worsen Brain Structure, Function (medscape.com)
Roughly two thirds of American with Alzheimer’s are women, but it isn’t exactly clear why the disease disproportionately impacts females. Given that age is the strongest known risk factor for Alzheimer’s, scientists have previously attributed the imbalance to women’s longevity. But researchers are beginning to realize there’s likely more to this story. When it comes to Alzheimer’s, growing evidence shows there are important biological differences between men and women. In recent years, scientists have honed in on estrogen as one biological factor that may underpin women’s risk for developing Alzheimer’s. More Estrogen, Better Brain Health, a Small Study Suggests – Being Patient
Older adults with mild dementia can improve their ability to complete everyday tasks and enhance quality of life by using smartphone memory aids, a new study finds. Older adults with mild cognitive impairment or early dementia were coached on how to use a digital voice recorder application and a reminder app on their smartphones. After four weeks, study participants reported improvements in performing daily tasks that they had intended to accomplish. Smartphone technology helps seniors with mild dementia complete daily tasks, study finds – Clinical Daily News – McKnight’s Long-Term Care News (mcknights.com)
Check out Sheila Welch’s Care Partners Guide, “Still Standing.” She leads the Loving Through Dementia Ministry at Due West UMC Church in Marietta, GA. Many of the resources listed are specific to Georgia, but filled with great advice. http://lovingthroughdementia.org/downloads/Still_Standing.pdf
A new blood test that identifies a variant of the protein P53 appears to predict Alzheimer’s disease progression up to 6 years in advance of a clinical diagnosis, early research suggests. Analysis of two studies showed the test (AlzoSure Predict), which uses less than 1 ml of blood, had numerous benefits compared with other blood tests that track AD pathology. Blood Test May Detect Preclinical Alzheimer’s Years in Advance (medscape.com)
Both tau and amyloid protein accumulate into toxic clumps throughout the brain and are implicated in the neurodegeneration observed in Alzheimer’s. The Tau Next Generation (Tau NexGen) clinical trial will now be evaluating an anti-amyloid antibody in addition to an anti-tau antibody as a potential treatment for early onset Alzheimer’s disease. The Tau NexGen study was originally designed to focus on therapies that target the tau protein. However, increasing evidence has shown that targeting amyloid protein also can reduce biomarkers of Alzheimer’s. Tau NexGen Alzheimer’s Trial Now Also Testing Anti-Amyloid Treatment (alzheimersnewstoday.com)
The monoclonal antibody lecanemab, taken at a bi-weekly dose of 10 mg/kg, completely cleared amyloid within 18 months in 80% patients with early Alzheimer’s disease, results of a phase 2b study show. These data show lecanemab removes plaque quite quickly. In addition, amyloid clearance appears to correlate with a slowing of cognitive decline, suggesting the drug has an impact on the disease process. Lecanemab Effective in Clearing Amyloid in Early Alzheimer’s (medscape.com)
The Milken Institute Alliance to Improve Dementia Care has published a new report that presents actionable recommendations to advance comprehensive dementia care models.
The Alzheimer’s.gov website hosted by the National Institute on Aging, is an educational resource and online portal that highlights federal information on Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Information includes causes, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of dementias as well as tips and resources, clinical trials and resources for health care providers, health workers and researchers. https://www.alzheimers.gov/
Here are four bits of wisdom from dementia care expert Teepa Snow on making the holiday season more dementia-inclusive. See the story >>
Great Holiday gift giving guides for seniors from DailyCaring:
- 37 Great Gifts for Senior Men – DailyCaring
- 32 Wonderful Gifts for Senior Women – DailyCaring
- 8 Worst Gifts for Seniors (and What to Give Instead) – DailyCaring
Support ACA by using AmazonSmile! Designate Alzheimer’s of Central Alabama and Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases. smile.amazon.com