Due to inclement weather in the state of Georgia, the Alzheimer’s Association has cancelled the February 13th Alzheimer’s Awareness Day at the Georgia State Capitol, and rescheduled it for Thursday, February 27th–which will join in with the second day of Senior Week at the Capitol. Please spread the word and we hope to see you on the 27th!
~ Natasha Foreman Bryant
By Natasha Foreman Bryant
A study shows an association between exposure to DDT (the chemical used to kill malaria-carrying mosquitos) and Alzheimer’s, but it has yet to be proven that DDT exposure causes Alzheimer’s since research has shown that patients had two high risk factors: the high levels of DDT “as well as a variation in the APOE gene, which is known to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s.” (USA Today).
Since scientists have found 20 genes that increase the risk of Alzheimer’s, only APOE has a large effect on Alzheimer’s, which increases the risk in people who “inherit two copies of the variations” by 10 to 12 times, Scientist Steven DeKosky says.
Although DDT was banned in the US in 1972 by the Environmental Protection Agency because of the risk to wildlife (jeesh no one also considered human life), it is still used in other countries, and its reintroduction was endorsed by the World Health Organization in 2006.
So can we expect an influx of Alzheimer’s diagnoses in the coming years both pre and postmortem?
“Alzheimer’s is the sixth-leading cause of death in the USA, and affects more than 5.2 million Americans. As the country ages, the number of cases is expected to increase 40% by 2025,” according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
To read more about this story and the research behind it visit
Please join the Alzheimer’s Association in their fight to beat down and rid our world of Alzheimer’s. Visit: http://alz.org
Copyright 2014. Natasha Foreman Bryant. Some Rights Reserved.
Sources:
USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/27/ddt-alzheimers-risk/4915421/
Alzheimer’s Association: https://alz.org
By Natasha Foreman Bryant
A 69-year old man was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s two years ago, and he made a point of planning out his life needs, medical requests, etc. while he was still capable of making those decisions.
If you or someone you love has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, or are still in the early stages where decisions can be made personally or elected to another party, then please read this story. Read more about this brave man here
Source: Alzheimer’s Association http://blog.alz.org/making-plans-for-the-future-after-an-alzheimers-diagnosis/?WT.mc_id=enews2014_01_29&utm_source=enews-aff-46&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=enews-2014-01-29
Paradigm Life 