Alzheimer's of Central Alabama

Serving people with Alzheimer’s, caregivers and professionals in central Alabama through education, caregiver services and research grants.

ACA’s Weekly Email March 31, 2023

ACA is bringing the Garden Art Party back, May 6, at the Fennec, Birmingham!  Live & silent auction to benefit ACA’s service programs for low- income families living with Alzheimer’s. https://alzca.org/gap/

M4A’s Take a Stand for Caregivers webinar with ACA Executive Director, Miller Piggott, Can We Impact Our Brain Health, April 5, 10 – 11 CT.  https://www.humanresourceoptions.com/upcomingseminars

AFA Care Connection Webinar: Improving Quality of Life with Music-Based Interventions.  April 13, noon – 1 pm CT, Alzheimer’s Foundation of America | Care Connection Webinar: Improving Quality of Life with Music-Based Interventions (alzfdn.org)

Discovery United Methodist Church is offering series, Aged to Perfection, Tuesday evenings, through May 2, at 6:30.  ACA Executive Director, Miller Piggott, will speak on Understanding Dementia and Care for the Caregiver, April 18.  5487 Stadium Trace Parkway, Hoover.  www.discoveryumc.org.

M4A Long Term Care Planning Conference, April 26, 9 – 3, Rolling Hills Conference Center, Calera. https://www.humanresourceoptions.com/upcomingseminars

Alzheimer’s News:

Less than 1% of Alzheimer’s is caused by inheriting a single copy of a particular mutated gene. Children of an affected parent have a 50-50 chance of inheriting the family Alzheimer’s gene. If they do, they’re almost guaranteed to get sick at about the same age as their parent did.  Doug Whitney inherited the same gene mutation that gave Alzheimer’s disease to his mother, brother and generations of other relatives by the unusually young age of 50.  Yet he’s a healthy 73, his mind still sharp. Somehow, the Washington man escaped his genetic fate.  So did a woman in Colombia who dodged her own family’s similar Alzheimer’s destiny for nearly three decades.  To scientists, these rare “escapees” didn’t just get lucky. They offer an unprecedented opportunity to learn how the body may naturally resist Alzheimer’s.  “It’s unique individuals oftentimes that really provide us with breakthroughs,” said Dr. Eric McDade of Washington University in St. Louis, where Whitney’s DNA is being scoured for answers. Seeking Alzheimer’s clues from few who escape genetic fate | AP News

 

The global genetic testing market was valued at $8 billion in 2021, according to Precedence Research. Ancestry tracing sites have spurred the growth of personal-information seeking so significantly that genealogy has become the second most popular hobby in the United States, Science News reports.  Nathaniel A. Chin, MD, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, says “probably the most important question” involving this interest is what people should consider before getting tested.  It’s not just a test that affects one person, just as Alzheimer’s is not a disease that affects one person. The key things to consider are: Why are they getting it? What are they hoping from the outcome? What is their motive?” Secondly, people need to consider what they will do with the information if they prove to be at risk. Will they behave differently and make changes? Will they see themselves differently or worry that others do? What are the psychological consequences of knowing this information?  Alzheimer’s Foundation of America | Genetic Testing for Alzheimer’s Disease: To Test or Not to Test (alzfdn.org)

Read the latest issue for AFA’s Alzheimer’s Today:  https://alzfdn.org/media-center/alztoday/alzheimers-today-volume-18-number-1/

Making a plan about what to do about firearms in the home can be difficult. An estimated 33 to 60 percent of people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias have a firearm in the home, and 38 percent of their caregivers identify firearms as an issue to address.  In collaboration with caregivers, dementia and firearm organizations, and other experts, a team at the University of Colorado is studying the effectiveness of a no-cost online educational resource that can help dementia care partners clarify values and make decisions about firearms access and driving, take steps to improve safety at home, and commit to implementing their preferred option. To learn more about the research study, visit the Safe at Home website

Are you having a little trouble hearing conversations? If so, you’re not alone. An estimated 23% of Americans ages 12 and older have hearing loss. Although most of those people have mild hearing loss, for people ages 80 years and older, it’s more common for hearing loss to be moderate to severe than mild.  But not only is moderate to severe hearing loss disruptive to one’s life, it also makes you more likely to develop dementia.  Researchers found that about 33% of participants had normal hearing, 37% had mild hearing loss, and 30% had moderate to severe hearing loss. Dementia occurred least often among those with normal hearing (6%), more often among those with mild hearing loss (9%), and most often among those with moderate to severe hearing loss (17%). That’s a large increase in risk, particularly for those whose hearing loss is moderate to severe.  Want to reduce your risk of dementia? Get your hearing checked today – Harvard Health

Physical exercise may improve the motor symptoms and quality of life for patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), new research shows.  A systematic review of 156 clinical trials involving 8000 patients with PD, showed dancing and aquatic exercise, in particular, were most likely to improve motor symptoms, while swimming, endurance training, and mind-body training were most likely to benefit quality of life (QoL).  Exercise Tied to Reduced Parkinson’s Motor Symptoms (medscape.com)

According to a new study, people with elevated stress levels may have worsened cognitive function, affecting their memory, concentration, and ability to learn.  People were 37% more likely to have lower cognitive function when they had elevated stress.  The effect occurred in both Black and white individuals, but Black individuals reported more stress overall.  Experts say unabated stress can cause numerous effects on physical and mental health.  Learning to trigger the relaxation response can counteract stress.  Stress Can Affect Your Ability to Think Clearly, Study Finds (healthline.com)

Smell dysfunction acts as an early indicator of cognitive decline as well as signs of frailty in the brain and unhealthy aging. Researchers assessed olfactory sensitivity and olfactory identification, which describe the ability to detect an odor and the ability to detect and name an odor, respectively.  As with vision and hearing, sense of smell weakens as we age.  Smell tests may become an integral part to clinical care for aging people who may be cognitively impaired.  An Older Person’s Sense of Smell Can Predict Health Issues (medscape.com)

In a Senate hearing on the 2024 Health and Human Services budget, March 22, lawmakers called for the federal government to provide Medicare coverage for the treatment of Alzheimer’s. The proclamations came in response to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services denying a request from advocates to reconsider its restrictive national coverage determination policy for Alzheimer’s drugs. CMS issued the coverage decision for aducanumab (Aduhelm), applying it to all future monoclonal antibody treatments. Senate Finance Committee ranking member Mike Crapo (R-ID) said that the Food and Drug Administration’s accelerated approval pathway has provided a “lifeline” to advancing access to safe and effective medicines for conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease years before those treatments can come to the market.  But he said during the hearing that the administration is eroding that pathway, “deterring life-saving innovation and delaying access to care.” He said the move has “grave implications” for Alzheimer’s coverage decisions.  “Lawmakers chide HHS for ‘eroding the pathway’ to Alzheimer’s treatments – News – McKnight’s Senior Living (mcknightsseniorliving.com)

DEADLINE APRIL 1!  AFA’s Teen Alzheimer’s Awareness Scholarship is for college-bound high school seniors who have been impacted by Alzheimer’s disease.  Submit an essay (1,500 word maximum) or  video (no more than 4 minutes long) describing the impact of Alzheimer’s or dementia.  The grand prize winner receives $5,000, with additional prizes awarded to runners-up. Deadline for entries is 5 pm ET, April 1. Alzheimer’s Foundation of America | AFA’s Teen Alzheimer’s Awareness Scholarship (alzfdn.org)

April Webinars from Alabama Lifespan Respite: https://alabamarespite.org/events2/

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