Alzheimer’s is a Women’s Health Issue

Part 1

     It is true that Alzheimer’s disease affects both women and men, but the condition is vastly gaining attention as a women’s health issue.  To date, there are no known physiological links between gender and the disease’s development; but current statistics indicate that women are being affected more than men.  Approximately 2/3 of Americans that find themselves diagnosed with the disease are women with greater than 60% being the caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. 

     This disease has a devastating impact on both the person diagnosed as well as their caregivers.  This alone makes it a high priority within the realm of women’s health issues. 

Understanding the Disease

       Alzheimer’s disease rests in the category of cognitive (mental and reasoning) disorders most commonly known as dementia.  It is defined via the Alzheimer’s Association as “a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life”.  There are a number of forms of dementia, with Alzheimer’s being among the most common of them.  This is a disease that makes up for an estimated 60 to 80% of all dementia cases and it is reported that greater than 5 million Americans are currently living with the disease. 

      Generally, it is accepted that Alzheimer’s is the disease of the aging, given the fact that the majority of its sufferers are above the age of 65.  What is not widely known is the fact that there are about 200,000 people under the age of 65 that currently suffer from the disease.  Therefore, Alzheimer’s is NOT a normal part of the aging process. 

Women’s Health

     As previously stated, both men and women can and do suffer from the disease, but women suffer greater effects of the disease.  The lifetime risk of a women for the development of Alzheimer’s by the age of 65 is 1 in 6.  This is compared to a man’s lifetime risk, which is 1 in 11.  To put things firmly into perspective for you, the risk for an older women becoming afflicted with Alzheimer’s is greater than her risk of suffering from breast cancer.  According to the Alzheimer’s Association, women in their 60’s are approximately twice as likely to develop the disease during the remainder of their lives as compared to breast cancer. 

Risk Factors

     There are three (widely accepted) risk factors for the disease, which include the following: being a woman, family history and advancing age.  It does need to be noted that although the risk factors have been identified, there is no clear indication (at this time) as to how they work.

    The greatest known risk factor is that of advancing age.  The likelihood of a person developing the disease tends to double every 5 years after the age of 65 and after 85 the likelihood nears 50%.  Family history appears to play a significant role as well.  Those that have had a close relative develop Alzheimer’s find themselves far more likely to develop the disease as opposed to someone that has no family ties to it.  The rick increases with the number of family members that suffer or have suffered from the disease. 

      

Women have a higher risk factor for the disease due to the fact that women tend to live longer than men.  Researchers also contend that additional explanations may also play into why being female increases the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. 

The Brain & Alzheimer’s

     This is a disease that attacks the brain causing issues with behavior, thinking as well as memory.  This involves brain plagues, which are abnormal protein fragment clusters that build between nerve cells.  The attacks also involve tangles, which are twisted strands of protein within dying and dead nerve cells.  These tangles and plagues interfere with the connections between brain cells creating cell death.  They are what is responsible for the progression of the disease as well as its symptoms. 

    The damage caused by the disease tends to [generally] start within the hippocampus, the region of the brain that is responsible for learning and memory. 

For Part 2, visit http://womansed101.blogspot.com/2015/11/alzheimers-is-womens-health-issue-part-2.html 

For Part 3 visit http://womansed101.blogspot.com/2015/11/alzheimers-is-womens-health-issue-part-3.html