The Pat Summitt Foundation strives not only to find a cure for Alzheimer’s but also to provide support and resources to those affected by it. As part of our ongoing support of the Foundation, we’ve provided a series of unique facts about Alzheimer’s and the ground-breaking research taking place every day that brings us one step closer to a cure.
Alzheimer’s Figures
Many numbers surround Alzheimer’s and it can be difficult to sort through them. Below are four of the most striking statistics and facts about Alzheimer's.
- While deaths from other major causes have decreased, deaths from Alzheimer’s have increased 71 percent since 2000.
- It is the only cause of death in the top 10 in America that cannot be prevented, cured or even slowed down by conventional medicine.
- According to the Alzheimer's Association, Medicare spending for patients with Alzheimer's and other types of dementia is three times higher than for seniors without dementia, and Medicaid payments are 19 times higher.
- Every 67 seconds someone in the United States develops the disease.
Alzheimer’s Causes
While scientists have been unable to pinpoint an exact cause for Alzheimer’s, their research has led to a better understanding of how the brain functions and the most common symptoms between all Alzheimer’s patients.
- Alzheimer’s has two hallmarks: plaques and tangles. Plaques are most commonly referred to as beta-amyloid buildups inside the brain, which are speculated to cause brain cell death. Tangles are twisted sections of the protein tau that prevent brain cells from effectively transporting nutrients and other essential materials throughout their extensions.
- Alzheimer’s is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Individuals who have the gene APOE4 are more likely to develop the disease themselves as are those who have not developed healthy living habits.
- Age is a significant factor in developing Alzheimer’s. After age 65, the risk of Alzheimer's doubles every five years. After age 85, the risk reaches nearly 50 percent.
- Certain risk factors have been shown to increase a person’s chance of developing Alzheimer’s. These include age, family history, vascular conditions, metabolic conditions, Down Syndrome, sex, past head trauma and social engagement. A combination of a few or several of these increase an individual’s risk.
Cutting-Edge Research
As the population grows older and the number of people with Alzheimer’s increases, researchers are spending more and more time looking into what causes the disease, and more importantly into new possible cures. As research continues to be published new facts about Alzheimer's are surfacing.
- Korean researchers have discovered a chemical called EPPS which destroys beta-amyloid plaques present in Alzheimer’s patients’ brains.
- Australian researchers believe that a non-invasive ultrasound can break up beta-amyloid plaques and reverse memory loss. Though it has not been tested on humans, the treatment was effective when used on mice bred to develop Alzheimer’s.
- Patients treated with aducanumab showed a reduction in plaque build up in early stage Alzheimer’s patients. What is most promising about this treatment is that it was able to slow the clinical impairments of patients with mild forms of the disease.
- Molecular biologists who studied 14 cadavers of Alzheimer’s patients found that all 14 brains had fungal infections. This study is exciting to the scientific world because it hypothesizes that anti-fungal medicines may be able to treat Alzheimer’s.
Sleep and Alzheimer’s
One of the most recent developments in Alzheimer’s research demonstrates a connection between poor sleep and the development of the disease. Given this connection, it is of the utmost importance to stay well-rested and help your body get the restorative sleep it needs.
- According to a study in Neurobiology of Aging, sleep loss can also speed up the development of Alzheimer's disease.
- Sleeping on your right or left side is thought to improve the body’s ability to clear waste away from the brain, spinal cord and nervous system. Researchers at Stony Brook University found that the glymphatic system was up to 25 percent more efficient at removing beta-amyloid and tau proteins in rats when they slept on their sides.
- Alzheimer’s appears to degrade cells in the eye that tell the brain when it’s day or night. This explains the restlessness many patients experience at night. Their melanopsin retinal ganglion cells are damaged and unable to correctly sense light levels.
- A recent UC Berkeley study focused on the hypothesis that sleep is an early warning sign or biomarker of Alzheimer’s found that participants with the highest levels of beta-amyloid in the medial frontal cortex had the poorest quality of sleep and performed worst on a memory test the following morning. Some participants forgot more than half of the information they had memorized the previous day.
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Purchase your SHEEX® ORIGINAL Performance Sheet + Pillowcases // Pat Summitt Edition today and join Pat’s team in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. All facts in this post were collected from various sources including the Alzheimer’s Association, Mayo Clinic, UC Berkeley News, Science, Newsmax.com and UK Daily Mail.
