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Alzheimer’s disease causes most of the 55 million cases of dementia worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. To date, there is no treatment to treat it. But equine therapy appears to be a promising avenue.
Researchers from the University of Tours claim that spending time with horses could greatly improve the daily lives of people with Alzheimer’s disease. They came to this encouraging conclusion after conducting an experiment involving 34 patients aged 80 to 98 and living in a retirement home. The participants were divided into two groups: they had to either follow equine therapy sessions or music therapy.
Music therapy versus equine therapy against Alzheimer’s
Music therapy, the use of sound, rhythm and music for therapeutic purposes, is an increasingly popular approach to treating people with Alzheimer’s disease. This is because the fourth art has been proven to have beneficial effects on memory, reactivating cognitive abilities thought to be lost forever in some patients. It also has a positive impact on mood.
To compare the benefits of equine therapy and music therapy, 18 of the 34 volunteers underwent weekly therapy sessions with horses for three months. During these sessions, participants interacted with the animals by brushing them or walking alongside them, as explained New Scientist magazine. They also observed their movements from afar.
Greater improvements with equine therapy
The scientists then administered several standardized psychometric tests to volunteers in both groups to determine which treatment approach was best suited to people with Alzheimer’s disease. It turns out that both equine therapy and music therapy helped improve participants’ moods, but the change was more pronounced in those who had received equine therapy sessions.
In fact, members of the equine therapy group interacted more with other participants and caregivers than those in the music therapy group. They also had fewer symptoms of depression than them. Benefits that would be closely linked to the presence of horses, according to Léa Badin, a doctoral student at the University of Tours.
However, the horses did not seem to have any effect on the behavioral problems that the volunteers presented (agitation, aggressiveness, etc.). The conclusions of this research work, which were presented at the last edition of the Equine Science & Innovation Days, are nevertheless promising. They suggest a future where people with Alzheimer’s disease could live better with this pathology.
Slideshow: Equine therapy: experience a session step by step