Dementia includes Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia. Alzheimer’s is a degenerative brain disease that accounts for 70% of all dementia diseases. There is no clear cure yet, so prevention is the only answer.
Memory impairment, cognitive decline, and disorientation are known as the typical early symptoms of Alzheimer’s. But experts say there can be dozens of symptoms of Alzheimer’s. The Daily Mail introduces six early symptoms of Alzheimer’s that are not well known to the public.
Getty Images Bankjust throw money
Giving money to others easily is associated with cognitive decline in early Alzheimer’s. Researchers from the University of Southern California (USC) in the United States and Baylan University (BIU) in Israel conducted an experimental project in which 67 seniors distributed $10 to themselves and a stranger. The average age of the participants was 68 years old, and they did not have dementia or cognitive impairment. As a result of the experiment, those who gave more money to others than themselves had lower scores on the neuropsychological test for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. The lower the score, the lower the cognitive function. Even if there is no dementia right now, the elderly with cognitive decline are more likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. The study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Getty Images Bank Humor code change
If someone who used to like black humor like social satire suddenly smiles at a slapstick comedy like body gag, this could also be a sign of Alzheimer’s. Researchers at University College London (UCL) in the UK found that people with Alzheimer’s were more likely to laugh and watch slapstick comedies than healthy adults of a similar age.
In particular, a study of the families of 48 patients with frontotemporal dementia showed that most of the patients shifted from black humor to liking slapstick comedy a few years before they were diagnosed with dementia. In addition, he showed an abnormal sense of humor, such as bursting into laughter in inappropriate or even sad situations. The study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease in 2015.
Getty Images Bankchanged attire
If a person who was usually dressed neatly wears dirty clothes or clothes that are not suitable for the weather from one day, it is necessary to suspect Alzheimer’s.
Researchers at the University of Kent and the University of York, UK, gathered opinions from 32 dementia patients and their families at three nursing homes and found that the patients wore shabby or shabby clothes, such as torn clothes, in common since the onset of Alzheimer’s. According to caregivers, people with more advanced Alzheimer’s disease also had symptoms such as forgetting that they were wearing their own clothes, or having stiff muscles that made it more difficult to get dressed. The study was published in the 2018 Sociology of Health and Illness.
Getty Images Bankpoor driving ability
In a study of the driving habits of 139 people over the past year, researchers at the University of Washington, St. As Alzheimer’s begins to affect the brain’s motor abilities and thinking processes, driving skills naturally deteriorate. The study was published last year in Alzheimer’s Research and Therapy.
Getty Images Bankbecome an idiot
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the United States found that 18% of people with frontotemporal dementia answered the profane word ‘fxxk’ when asked what a word that started with the ‘f’ was. A study of 70 dementia patients published in Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology in 2010 found similar results.
Getty Images Bankunfiltered behavior
In a similar vein to profanity, the brains of people with Alzheimer’s tend to have a degenerate ability to filter out behavior. This is because the brain shows the phenomenon of contraction in the frontal lobe, the part that controls the filter. People with Alzheimer’s may be more rude than before the onset, undressing in public, or talking to strangers. Some may lose their sexual restraints, such as sexually harassing them in public, experts say.
The Alzheimer’s Society said, “Such behaviors can confuse or shock those around the patient. People with dementia may not understand why their behavior is inappropriate. It’s not that I had any intention of doing it.”
Correspondent Kim So-young, Donga.com [email protected]