Treating the risk factors for heart diseases like hypertension, high cholesterol and diabetes might also curb the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
Treating the risk factors for heart
diseases like hypertension, high cholesterol and diabetes might also curb the
progression of Alzheimer's disease. Dietary changes, cholesterol lowering
statins and anti-hypertensive drugs combined with other treatments which
promote healthy blood vessels reduces the risk of developing mild memory and
cognitive problems into Alzheimer's disease.
The study showed that participants
who took treatment for their heart conditions were 39% less likely to develop
Alzheimer's. The link between treating heart conditions and lowering the risk for
Alzheimer's is unclear but it is seen that treatment substantially reduces the
risk. Hypertension and high cholesterol may affect the accumulation of the
protein plaques in the brain that are a hallmark of the Alzheimer's and
treating the underlying cause may prevent the progression of the disease.
This study is significant as it
highlights the importance of vascular risk factors for Alzheimer's disease
which can be modified. One cannot do anything about the genetic and age
factors. The study was conducted in China and is published in the journal Neurology.
Source-Medindia