dementia; It is a disease that affects memory, thinking, and social skills. There are many different types. Dementia is defined as cognitive impairment that interferes with the activities of daily life. Forgetfulness and memory loss are characteristic findings in people with the disease. While this cognitive impairment causes difficulties in daily living activities, it also weakens language, perception, skill, practice, attention and reasoning functions. It is possible to prevent dementia, which has increased so much, by regulating life habits.
ALONE IS NOT GOOD FOR BRAIN CELLS
Neurologist Dr. Nil Çetin made statements about dementia. Emphasizing that living alone and not being able to socialize due to lack of life partner/partner in later ages, it disrupts the communication between brain nerve cells. Dr. Nil Çetin said, “Research shows that loneliness is not good for brain cells and negatively affects the brain’s cognition and perception abilities and memory. People who are lonely have a higher risk of dementia than people who are not lonely. Being alone, not sharing, not speaking, not doing any activity and living inwardly disrupts the communication between nerve cells. Making friends-partners, being in social life and sharing reduces the risk of disease. “Speaking, chatting and getting rid of introversion increase the connection between neurons,” he said.
DIFFICULTY IN WALKING IN LATE STAGE, FINDINGS OF DON’T RECOGNIZE PEOPLE ARE OBSERVED
Emphasizing that dementia is a disease of insidious onset and constantly progressing, Bayındır Söğütözü Hospital Neurology Specialist Dr. Nil Çetin continued her explanations as follows:
“The disease progresses 5-10 years after diagnosis and can go to a level that can cause loss of self-care. While forgetfulness is at the forefront in the early stage, it is seen that the patients get lost in the middle stage, impaired communication, decreased personal hygiene, need for help, and asking repetitive questions. In the late stage, difficulty in walking, complete addiction, inability to recognize even very close relatives, aggression and psychological symptoms develop.
THE DISEASE IS PROJECTED TO REACH 150 MILLION
The number of patients with dementia, which is around 50 million today, is expected to reach 150 million in 2050. Stating that 60 to 70 percent of dementia patients have Alzheimer’s dementia, Dr. Dr. Nil Çetin said, “This is followed by vascular dementia due to cerebrovascular diseases. There are also Frontotemporal dementia, Huntington’s disease, Lewy body dementia and mixed type dementias. Genetic variants of Alzheimer’s disease appear at younger ages. “Genetic origin plays a role in 5 percent of patients,” he said.
THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE PATIENT SHOULD NOT BE CHANGED
Stating that there is no special test to determine the diagnosis of the disease, Uzm. Dr. Nil Çetin stated that the patient was diagnosed with the patient’s history, detailed examination of the clinician, blood test and imaging, and continued as follows: “In treatment, cholinesterase inhibitors and memantine appear as specific drugs. In addition, in this process, it is of great importance that the environment in which the patient lives and the caregiver are as stable as possible and that it is not changed, and that measures such as preventing falls are taken.
THINGS TO DO TO PREVENT DEMENTIA
Underlining that dementia is a preventable disease, Dr. Dr. Nil Çetin listed what needs to be done to avoid the disease:
• Performing activities that will keep the mind active such as reading, solving puzzles, sudoku, card games, chess, puzzles, word games,
• Socializing,
• Not smoking and not consuming too much alcohol,
• Exercising and doing sports,
• Losing weight, eating regularly and healthily,
• Being exposed to plenty of sun,
• Taking food and vitamin supplements (vitamins B, C, D, E),
• Treatment of other health problems (such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression),
• Sleep well,
• Avoiding depression.