By the time most senior citizens start showing signs of Alzheimer’s disease, it has moved to a stage where there is irreversible damage. That is why it is important to know the signs of Alzheimer’s that sometimes show up before memory loss, because the sooner it is detected, the faster doctors can figure out a way to begin fighting it.
Scientists have not found a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. However, they do know that if they can prevent it from occurring in the first place or even slow down the progression, patients can live longer, more constructive lives.
5 Signs of Alzheimer’s That Sometimes Show up Before Memory Loss
1. Loss of Smell – Losing the sense of smell is one of the signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Losing the ability to smell something is not a cognitive problem. Yet, experts believe that a massive buildup of a protein called beta-amyloid is responsible for the loss of smell.
Researchers were able to restore a sense of smell in lab rats by removing the beta-amyloid buildup. It should be mentioned that not all Alzheimer’s disease patients will lose their sense of smell. It’s also possible that other illnesses or injuries cause smell loss. However, by treating plaque that is building up in the brain, it could also stop early cognitive impairment that could later turn into Alzheimer’s.
2. Less Cerebrospinal Fluid – When the cerebrospinal fluid levels decrease in brain plaques, it often leads to Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. It is possible to detect less cerebrospinal fluid up to 25 years before Alzheimer’s disease begins, but usually shows up within five to ten years before.
3. Brain Shrinkage – In Volume 11, Issue 12 in a December, 2012 edition of Lancet Neurology, researchers reported on a study that was completed on an extended Colombian family. This family had a genetic form of Alzheimer’s. It allowed researchers to document more than five thousand family members and determine that brain shrinkage was evident up to 20 years before another cognitive damage was apparent.
4. Less Insulin and Glucose Production – When less glucose is being produced by the brain, it can cause difficulties in memory up to ten years before memory loss in Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Neurons use glucose to feed the brain.
HBO’s “The Alzheimer’s Project: Momentum in Science” showed that it was a higher level of insulin that helped boost memory and not necessarily glucose. Elderly people who suffer from diabetes run higher risks of cognitive disorders and Alzheimer’s disease than people who do not.
5. Increased Levels of Tau – Increased levels of tau are also early signs of later Alzheimer’s, according to researchers at the Technical University in Munich, Germany. By studying a combination between elevated levels of tau and amyloid precursor proteins, they were able to detect future Alzheimer’s disease in over 80% of the patients in the study.
Tau protein levels increased in practically all of the elderly who later developed Alzheimer’s disease. The presence of this biochemical marker is consistent across the board for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, frontal lobe dementia, as well as vascular dementia.
5 Signs of Alzheimer’s That Sometimes Show up Before Memory Loss – Conclusion
Those are 5 signs of Alzheimer’s that sometimes show up before memory loss. There are also others, but these are the main ones that are usually discussed by doctors and scientists.
With emphasis placed on modern therapies that can slow down or even stop the disease from advancing. It’s necessary to first diagnose Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia accurately, so it is possible to begin therapy before degeneration begins. That can only be done with regular checkups and proper diagnosis.
