heads up for healthier brains

Heads up For Healthier Brains

Julie Wong

www.alzheimertoronto.org

Julie Wong

Public Education Coordinator

• A set of symptoms, which include loss of memory,

understanding and judgment.

• Reversible: delirium, depression, thyroid or heart

What is Dementia?


• Reversible: delirium, depression, thyroid or heart

disease, alcohol abuse, malnutrition, drug

interaction

• Irreversible: Alzheimer’s Disease, Vascular

Dementia, Fronto-temporal Disease, Lewy Body

Dementia

What is Dementia?


Alzheimer’s Frontal Lewy Body Vascular CreutzfeldtDisease Temporal Disease Dementia Jakob

Dementia Disease

• 36 million people worldwide have

Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia

Statistics


• 500,000 people in Canada have Alzheimer’s

Disease or a related dementia

• 71, 000 under the age of 65

Progressive: the amount of damage done by the disease increases over time

Degenerative: the nerve cells/neurons in the brain

Defining Alzheimer’s Disease


Degenerative: the nerve cells/neurons in the brain degenerate or break down

Irreversible: damage caused by the disease cannot be repaired - at present there is no cure

What causes AD?


Normal Brain vs Alzheimer Brain


Normal Brain

Brain Atrophied by Alzheimer Disease

Signs & Symptoms

1) Memory loss

2) Difficulty performing

familiar tasks

3) Problems with language

6) Problems with

abstract thinking

7) Misplacing things


3) Problems with language

4) Disorientation of time

and place

5) Poor or decreased

judgment

8) Changes in mood and

behaviour

9) Changes in personality

10) Loss of initiative

• Age

• Gender

• Genetics

Risk Factors Beyond Our Control


• Genetics

Other Risk Factors

• Head injury

• Lack of physical exercise

• Stress

• Heart disease

• Obesity

• High cholesterol

• High blood pressure


• Stress

• Smoking

• Lack of mental or intellectual challenge

• Low levels of formal education

• High blood pressure

• Diabetes

• Depression

• Others

• Protect your head

• Be socially active

Take Action for a Healthier Brain


• Be socially active

• Choose a healthy life style

• Challenge your brain

Protect your Head


• Join a club, hobby group or take a class

• Attend church/synagogue/temple/mosque

• Volunteer

• Visit or be visited by relatives/ friends

Be Socially Active


• Visit or be visited by relatives/ friends

• Be physically active

• Make healthy food choices

• Manage your stress

• Get enough sleep

Choose a Healthy Lifestyle


• Get enough sleep

• Track your health numbers

• Stop smoking and moderate your alcohol consumption

• 87% of people who own running shoes do

not run

• Effective exercise is regular, sustained,

Be Physically Active


• Effective exercise is regular, sustained,

varied

• Choose activities you enjoy

• Mediterranean diet

– Quality/variety

– not quantity

Make Healthy Food Choices


– not quantity

• Antioxidants

• Omega-3 fatty acids

• Vitamins

• Interferes with normal physiological

equilibrium in the body

• Increases the release of cortisol

– Prepares body for action

Stress


– Prepares body for action

• Some stress is good and necessary

• Prolonged stress is damaging

• A good sleep is a necessity not a luxury

• Any amount of sleep deprivation will

diminish mental performance

• Practice good sleep habits

Sleep


• Practice good sleep habits

• Be Heart healthy– Body weight

– Blood pressure

– Cholesterol

Track your Health Numbers


• Blood sugar levels

• See your doctor regularly

• Get treatment for depression

• Use it or lose it

Challenge Your Brain


• Be a life long learner

• Technology and brain

health

• Stay curious

• Try something different

• Challenge your senses

Challenge Your Brain


• Challenge your senses

• Do something new every day

What do you see?


Riddle me this…

• If you drop me I'm sure to crack but give me

a smile and I'll always smile back. What am

I?


I?

• It’s never too late to start

• The more you do – the better

• No guarantees

Conclusion


• No guarantees

• Counselling

• Support groups (varied and ongoing)

• Education and Information

– Workshops/Forums

Alzheimer Society of Toronto

Services and Programs


– Workshops/Forums

– Resource Centre/Lending Library

– In person/online

• Ipod Project

• Finding your way

Grounded in extensive neuroscience about brain-music

response, personalized music has been shown to;

� Act as a conduit of memory

� Improve cognition and communication

Alzheimer Toronto Music & Memory

iPod Project


� Improve cognition and communication

� Improve mood

� Produce other desirable forms of interaction

� Key is person appropriate music selection, not age

appropriate.

o iPod Packages provided to individuals whom;

1. Diagnosis of dementia

2. Reside in Toronto (416) (caregiver or person w/ dementia)

3. Caregiver willing to provide scheduled feedback (3,6,12 mos.)

Alzheimer Toronto Music & Memory:

iPod Project


Contact:

Sabrina McCurbin; iPod Project Coordinator

416-640-6305 [email protected]

www.alzheimertoronto.org/ipod.html

Available at NO COST upon approval

Finding Your Way is a program designed to:

• Raise awareness of the risk of going missing for people with

dementia

• Help prevent missing incidents by promoting the creation of a

www.alzheimertoronto.org 2

8

• Help prevent missing incidents by promoting the creation of a

safety plan

• Support the safe return of people who do go missing

All the programs tools can be downloaded and printed from the

Finding Your Way website:

www.findingyourwayontario.ca

Questions?


Questions?20 Eglinton Avenue West, 16th Floor

416-322-6560

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