My name is Neda, and I am a PhD student at the ISLAND Clinic in the Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre. Recently, I’ve joined the ISLAND project team and I look forward to working with them, and you, as we offer activities to you throughout the year. Before starting my studies, I worked as a physio in community and aged care sites across Tasmania for many years, which in retrospect, made me passionate about finding ways to detect dementia early. For my research project, I work with Dr Katherine Lawler and Associate Professor Jane Alty, investigating whether subtle changes in movement can be used to monitor brain health. Research shows that early changes in the brain can cause subtle changes in movement and function of limbs. For example, walking can slow down more than is expected from age. These changes may be used as a “motor biomarker” to help detect those who are at risk of dementia. Our research team is investigating whether testing hand movement can detect those early subtle changes. Hopefully, our research will pave the way for developing online motor biomarkers for dementia. I’m also passionate about helping people to move well and I love seeing people, especially older adults, improve their health through physical activity and exercise. You have probably heard about the many benefits of regular physical activity but, did you know that it is good for your brain as well as your body? Studies show that exercise in midlife can promote brain health, and older adults who exercise are more likely to maintain their cognition. Besides, exercise can help with maintaining strength and balance which is important for fall prevention. From personal experience, it is a good idea to find an activity that you enjoy and can incorporate into your daily life. When starting a new physical activity, your body needs some time to get used to it, and so you need to keep on exercising. But if you have done the same activity for a long time, it would be a good idea to change it slightly. A few minutes more exercise or walking a little faster or farther can do the trick. My last tip is to have sensible expectations. Expecting exercise to work in two or three weeks is not realistic. In time, physical activity of any type helps our bodies, brain and our health. Get active and you're on your way to improved health.
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Understanding Dementia MOOC Opens Soon
As we get older, it is normal to slow down a bit, mentally and physically. Completing tasks may take a bit longer or remembering names may be more challenging. This does not mean that dementia is an inevitable part of ageing.
Dementia is a syndrome, a collection of symptoms caused by a number of conditions. These conditions cause changes in the brain and the impact becomes more apparent over time. Dementia does not only affect memory, but a whole range of areas including language, behaviour, personality, emotions and physical functions. The risk of dementia increases with ageing as there is more time for conditions causing dementia to occur and for symptoms to emerge. So, ageing does increase the risk of dementia, but does not cause dementia. As we age, it is important to address other dementia risk factors which can be modified. You can find out more about dementia, including causes, symptoms and impacts on the person living with dementia and those providing care in the free online course, Understanding Dementia. The next offering of this course opens on 8 February 2022. For more details and to enrol in the course, please go to your ISLAND portal.
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Smoking Increases Risk of Developing Dementia
We all know smoking is not good for our health and it's certainly not good for your brain. Smoking significantly impacts vascular function and is toxic to the brain. As a result, smoking is one of the major risk factors for dementia and has been associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline, Alzheimer's Disease and vascular dementia. Researchers have investigated how smoking interacts with risk for dementia. Studies have looked at how risk for dementia might change depending on your smoking status (never smoked, past smoker, and current smoker). Unsurprisingly, the researchers found that current smoking increased the risk of dementia (from any cause) by a significant amount (34% for every 20 cigarettes consumed per day - refer Cancer Council of Victoria.). However, former smokers were found to have a similar risk profile to those who had never smoked. This suggests that by giving up smoking, individuals can potentially reduce their dementia risk to that of someone who has never smoked. Now, that's great news! Want to give up? Click here to contact QUIT Tasmania
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