Exercise May Prevent Fall Risk for People with Alzheimer's Disease: Study

Guwahati: Good news for people suffering from Alzheimer's disease or dementia. A new study that appeared in the American Journal of American Geriatrics, has revealed that exercise may decrease the risk of falling for older adults who have Alzheimer's disease and mental health challenges.

It may be noted that Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a brain disease that causes changes that kill brain cells. It is a type of dementia, which causes memory loss and problems with thinking and making decisions. People with AD and other forms of dementia have difficulties performing the daily activities others might consider routine.

It needs to be noted that Dementia takes a severe toll on those who live with it and it also places a burden on caregivers. Along with problems connected to memory, language, and decision-making, dementia can cause neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, changes in mood, increased irritability, and changes in personality and behaviour. People who have AD/dementia also have twice the risk of falls compared to people without dementia. About 60 per cent of older adults with dementia falls each year.

According to the study, researchers have suggested that having neuropsychiatric symptoms might predict whether an older person with AD/dementia is more likely to have a fall.

However, exercise can reduce the number of falls in older adults with dementia.

As per reports, a research team decided to explore whether exercise could reduce the risk of falling among community-dwelling people with AD who also had neuropsychiatric symptoms.

To learn more, the researchers reviewed a study that investigated the effects of an exercise program for older adults with AD (the FINALEX trial). The study included a range of people living with different stages of AD/dementia and with neuropsychiatric symptoms.

The original FINALEX study examined and compared older adults who had home- or group-based exercise training with people who didn't exercise but who received regular care.

The researchers learned that the people who exercised had a lower risk of falls than those who didn't exercise. There was also a higher risk for falls among those who had lower scores on psychological tests and who didn't exercise.

This study revealed that people with AD/dementia and neuropsychiatric symptoms such as depression and anxiety have a higher risk of falls. Exercise can reduce the risk of falling for older adults with these symptoms.

Exercise can help reverse memory loss in the ageing brain through exercise.

Researchers have identified a naturally occurring bone hormone that can potentially reverse memory loss in the ageing brain through exercise.

It may be noted that earlier in 2015, there were approximately 29.8 million people worldwide with Alzheimer disease. It most often begins in people over 65 years of age, although 4% to 5% of cases are early-onset Alzheimers which begin before this. It affects about 6% of people 65 years and older. In 2015, dementia resulted in about 1.9 million deaths.

Alzheimer's disease (AD), also referred to simply as Alzheimer's, is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and worsens over time. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. However, now based on the new study, anybody suffering from this disease can reduce the number of falls and for those who are still young can prevent this through some proper exercises and lead a happy and healthy life.

Also Read: Exercise Can Help Boost Memory Through Bone Hormone