Dementia risk factors
Tipping the scales on dementia risk
You often hear people saying ‘prevention is better than cure’, and while there is no sure-fire way to prevent dementia, we are beginning to understand that there are ways we could reduce our risk of developing the condition.
Why we must be educating people in midlife about reducing their risk of dementia
Along with Public Health England and Alzheimer’s Society, we ran an innovative pilot project which saw, for the first time, dementia risk reduction messages delivered to 40-64-year-olds during their NHS Health Check.
New research: What can our genes tell us about Alzheimer’s?
We know that around 99% of cases of Alzheimer’s are not directly inherited – they’re caused by a complex mix of age, genetic risk factors and lifestyle.
Dementia risk reduction – supporting research to develop the evidence base
There is increasing recognition that a mixture of genetic, lifestyle and health factors are likely to contribute to whether someone develops dementia at a particular age.
Researching risk reduction
While elements of risk might be set in stone, at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference this week we’ve heard from researchers who are targeting elements of lifestyle that may alter our dementia risk, so called ‘modifiable risk factors’.
Who is most at risk of dementia?
Dementia is the most feared diagnosis in the over 55s in the UK, affecting around 850,000 people across the country. You often ask us why some people develop the condition and others don’t, and whether it’s possible to predict who will go on to get dementia.
How many people develop dementia in their 30s?
In this blog, we’ll explore how common these genetic forms are and what role our genes play in non-genetic forms of Alzheimer’s.
How is blood flow linked to Alzheimer’s disease?
In dementia, we know that what is good for the heart is good for the head and that keeping blood vessels healthy can help protect the brain and lower dementia risk.
Why do some people get dementia and not others?
But why do some people develop the diseases that causes dementia, while others are spared?
TREM2: Where are we now?
TREM2, discovered by Dr Rita Guerreiro in 2012, is a gene that codes for a protein produced by microglia – the brain’s immune defence cells.
