2.5 hours of exercise every week may help with mobility in people with Parkinson’s

Patients with Parkinson’s disease may be benefited by 2.5 hours of exercise every week, according to a new study. The American study suggests that exercising for at least 2.5 hours weekly may help Parkinson’s patients maintain physical health and quality of life.

Parkinson’s is a progressive degenerative disease of the central nervous system that mainly affects movement. The condition causes tremors, stiffness of the trunk and limbs, lack of balance and coordination, and mobility deterioration.

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About one million Americans are thought to have Parkinson's, and about 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with the condition each year. Most patients are aged over 50 but younger people can be affected as well.



Past studies have suggested that exercise may benefit patients with Parkinson's. One study found that patients with early Parkinson's who exercised 40 to 60 minutes three times a week experienced improved mobility and balance over 6 months, resulting in a reduction in falls.

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For this study, lead researcher Miriam R. Rafferty, Ph.D., of the Center for Education in Health Sciences at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, and colleagues sought to determine how regular exercise might help health-related quality of life (HRQL), and mobility for Parkinson’s patients over a 2-year period.

They analyzed more than 3,400 patients with Parkinson’s disease. The participants were a part of the National Parkinson Foundation Quality Improvement Initiative (NPF-QII), which gathers data on clinical care and outcomes for Parkinson's patients at 21 places in North America, the Netherlands, and Israel.



Over 2 years, the participants visited the clinic at least three times. During these visits, researchers collected data on the patients’ exercise duration each week, and their functional mobility and HRQL.

The team used Timed Up and Go (TUG) test to assess the participants’ mobility. During the test patients were required to stand up from a seated position, walk about 3 meters, turn around, and then sit back down. Patients self-reported HRQL through The Parkinson Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39).

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The researchers found that those who took part in a minimum of 2.5 hours of physical exercise a week experienced much slower declines in HRQL and mobility over 2 years, compared with patients who exercised less than 2.5 hours weekly.

"The most important part of the study is that it suggests that people who are not currently achieving recommended levels of exercise could start to exercise today to lessen the declines in quality of life and mobility that can occur with this progressive disease," says Rafferty.



The team also found that patients in the advanced stages of Parkinson's saw an improvement in both HRQL and mobility by increasing their physical activity by 30 minutes each week.

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The team says their findings have far-reaching implications for making Parkinson’s patients more physically active. They note that such patients may experience more severe impairments in their mobility, making participation in current exercise programs challenging.



The study was not intended to pinpoint what types of exercise are best for patients with Parkinson's, but the authors say that performing any type of physical activity is better than being sedentary.

"People with [Parkinson's disease] should feel empowered to find the type of exercise they enjoy, even those with more advanced symptoms," concludes Dr. Rafferty.

Findings of the study were published in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease.

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Chronic Stress Damages Brain, Increases Risk of Dementia

People with chronic stress and anxiety are at an increased risk of developing depression and even dementia, a new research has shown.

When the researchers noticed that mental illness is aggravated by stress, they aimed to address the question of whether anxiety damages the brain and whether they could identify mechanisms behind the connection between stress and mental illness.

For their research, the tem - led by Dr. Linda Mah of the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest Health Sciences in Canada reviewed animal and human studies that examined brain areas affected by chronic anxiety, fear and stress that are already published. They reported finding "extensive overlap" of the brain's neurocircuitry in all three conditions, which they said may justify the link between chronic stress and the development of neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression and Alzheimer's disease.

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Occasional and temporary fear and stress is normal part of life. This is common among people to feel stressed and anxious before a job interview or an exam. However, when these reactions become chronic or frequent, they can affect daily lives and interfere with work, school and relationships.

Chronic stress is a pathological state. It is caused by stress causing disruption on immune, metabolic and cardiovascular systems, which leads to decay of the brain's hippocampus (crucial for long-term memory and spatial navigation).

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Dr. Linda Mah, clinician scientist with Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute and lead author of the review said:

"Pathological anxiety and chronic stress are associated with structural degeneration and impaired functioning of the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which may account for the increased risk of developing neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression and dementia.”

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Dr. Mah and colleagues focused on key structures in the neurocircuitry of fear and anxiety – amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex, hippocampus. These brain areas are impacted during chronic stress. The researchers noted similar patterns of abnormal brain activity with fear, anxiety and chronic stress – specifically an overactive amygdala (associated with emotional responses) and an under-active PFC (thinking areas of the brain that help regulate emotional responses through cognitive appraisal).

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This see-saw relationship was first identified in a landmark study by world-renowned neurologist and depression researcher Dr. Helen Mayberg over a decade ago.

However, Dr. Mah also suggests that damage to the hippocampus and PFC as a result of stress can be reversible. She said that both anti-depressant treatment and physical activity have both shown promise in increasing hippocampal neurogenesis.

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The researchers conclude their study by writing:

"Whether anti-anxiety interventions can reduce risk of developing neuropsychiatric illness needs to be established with longitudinal studies."

The paper is posted online this month in the journal Current Opinion in Psychiatry.

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Music may improve memory in dementia patients, study finds

Music is a powerful medium that moves us physically and mentally. It has the power to transport us back to an earlier time or give us a sense of dejavu. Music has always been known to enhance our mood, but a new study reports that music may help preserve and even enhance cognitive function in elderly patients with mild to moderate dementia.

The findings of the study, conducted by researchers from University of Helsinki, Finland, and published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, could lead to better dementia care for the elderly.

Lead author of the study Dr. Teppo Sarkamo, a specialist in cognitive brain research, behavioral science and music research said,

“Our findings suggest that musical leisure activities could be easily applied and widely used in dementia care and rehabilitation.”

For the study, the researchers looked at the effects of musical coachingto 89 patients with mild to moderate dementia when they joined the 10-week intervention along with their caregivers. They were randomly assigned to one of three groups. Factors such as, participants’ age, dementia severity, care situation, and previous musical experience were taken into account.

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The first group of pairs went through 10 weeks of singing, the second group of pairs focused only on listening to music and the third group acted as a control group, which involved standard care only.

Evaluations taken after 9 months into the trial showed that memory, executive function, orientation and mood already improved in the groups receiving musical coaching compared with the control group. Executive function helps us focus attention, plan, remember and manage several tasks at the same time.

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The researchers also discovered that patients with mild dementia and below 80 years old benefited the most for memory, executive function and orientation by singing. For the patients with more advanced form of dementia, music listening led to the most cognitive enhancements.

Furthermore, singing and music listening also relieved depression for patients with mild Alzheimer's-type dementia, compared with the control group receiving standard care.

Another interesting fact noted by the researchers was that the patients’ musical background made no difference in the results.

Researchers advise that patients with dementia shouldengage in musical activities during the early stages of the disorder. Dr. Sarkamo even advises patients that they should be encouraged by their caregivers to sing regularly or join a community choir.

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“Given the increasing global prevalence and burden of dementia and the limited resources in public health care for persons with dementia and their family caregivers, it is important to find alternative ways to maintain and stimulate cognitive, emotional and social well-being in this population.” said Dr. Sarkamo.

“Especially stimulating and engaging activities, such as singing, seem to be very promising for maintaining memory functioning in the early stages of dementia.”

“In the later stages of dementia when the cognitive deficits are more severe, music listening could be a more easily applicable way,” Sarkamo concluded.

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Blueberries May Help Fight Alzheimer’s

Blueberries, a popular fruit, already classified as a “superfruit” for its health benefits, could now also help fight dementia, new research suggests.

Blueberries may help fight Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study conducted by University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center in Ohio.

The study was conducted by the team from the Universityof Cincinnati Academic Health Center in Ohio. Lead author Robert Krikorian said:

"Our new findings corroborate those of previous animal studies and preliminary human studies, adding further support to the notion that blueberries can have a real benefit in improving memory and cognitive function in some older adults.”

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A type of flavonoid known as anthocyanins, found in blueberries are not only responsible for its purple and blue color but, they also contribute to its numerous health benefits. Besides anthocyanins, an assorted variety of phenolic compounds can be found in blueberries. The compounds – quercetin, myricetin, kaempferol and chlorogenic acid contribute to the antioxidant capacity thereby increasing the health benefits of the superfood.

First Study Reveals Blueberries May Help Fight Alzheimer’s

One study involved 47 adults aged 68 and older, who had mild cognitive impairment, a risk condition for Alzheimer’s disease. They were given freeze-dried blueberry powder, which is equivalent to a cup of berries, or a placebo powder once a day for 16 weeks.

Dr. Krikorian reported:  

"There was improvement in cognitive performance and brainfunction in those who had the blueberry powder compared with those who took the placebo.

"The blueberry group demonstrated improved memory and improved access to words and concepts."

MRI scans conducted on the participants showed increased brain activity in those who ingested the blueberry powder, suggesting the superfoods may help fight Alzheimer’s disease.

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Dr Krikorian said blueberries' beneficial effects could be due to flavonoids called anthocyanins, which have been shown to improve cognition in animals.

A Bigger Study Reveals Same Results

A second study involved 94 people aged 62 to 80 who did not have measurable cognitive decline but reported experiencing memory loss. They were given either blueberry powder, fish oil (containing omega-3 fatty acids believed to prevent Alzheimer's), a combination of fish oil and blueberry powder, or a placebo.

"The results were not as robust as with the first study," said Dr. Krikorian.

"Cognition was somewhat better for those with powder or fish oil separately, but there was little improvement with memory."

fMRI results for participants given blueberry powder were found to be less significant than those observed in the first study.

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Dr Krikorian says that the difference may be because the participants had less severe issues when they entered the research.

He said the two studies provide a basis for future research from which they hope to ascertain whether or not blueberries could shield against the onset of Alzheimer's symptoms. While promising, the less robust results of the second study indicate that more research will be necessary.

At present, the researchers plan to conduct a study involving participants aged 50-65, including a number of people considered to be at risk of developing Alzheimer's - people who are obese, suffer from hypertension (high blood pressure) or hypercholesterolemia (high levels of cholesterol).

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Tombot Creates Robotic Dog Companion for Dementia Therapy

An estimated 97% of dementia sufferers experience behavioral and psychological symptoms of the disease (BPSD). Such symptoms, according to studies, can be reduced if the individuals form an emotional bond, especially to an object or animal. Tombot Robotics has now created a realistic robotic dog that can provide seniors with a stronger sense of control, connectedness, and purpose, ultimately reducing their symptoms.

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After conducting multiple testing with groups comprising of up to 700 individuals with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, researchers at Tombot concluded that a robotic animal with a hyper-realistic appearance, feel and behaviors can greatly elicit an emotional attachment with seniors suffering from these types of neurodegenerative diseases.

Tombot decided to invent a whole new type of robotthat would give the seniors a feel of a real pet. So, they turned to Jim Henson's world-renowned Creature Shop to provide the artistic design services for their robots.

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“Drawing upon their Academy Award-winning animatronics skills, Jim Henson's Creature Shop wonderfully captured Tombot's vision, creating a Labrador puppy fit for the big screen. The Tombot robotics team then brought the puppy to life, with a full suite of sensors and inventing software control systems to make the puppy both autonomous and fully interactive,” saysa press release.

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“Virtually all of Tombot's investors have (or had) loved ones with dementia. Through these interactions, we have come to appreciate that the benefits we are delivering aren't just for seniors with dementia, but also for those most responsible for their ongoing care and well-being,” said Tombot CEO Tom Stevens.

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Some of the Distinguishing features of the New Tombot Puppy

·         Realistic Appearance. A user-friendly design that is authentic to a real dog's anatomy. Tombot Puppies look, feel and move in a hyper-realistic way, far exceeding anything currently available in the animal robotics space.

·         Lifelike Expressions & Behavior. Software control system that allows the robot to respond to users in a manner consistent with how a real dog would respond.

·         Response to Voice Commands. Voice recognition system that listens to commands and responds accordingly.

·         Affordability. Roughly one-fifteenth the price of the Paro robot, the next best robot in the dementia space.

·         Easy Charging. Provides all-day battery life with a cord that plugs in for overnight charging.

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Daily tea drinking may reduce dementia risk in the elderly

Drink a cup of tea daily if you want to reduce your chances of developing dementia in old age, suggests a study from Singapore. Researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS) found that daily consumption of tea brewed from tea leaves cuts the risk of developing cognitive decline in the elderly by 50%. And, the risk is reduced even further (by 86%) in those who are genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s disease.

“Tea is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world. The data from our study suggests that a simple and inexpensive lifestyle measure such as daily tea drinking can reduce a person’s risk of developing neurocognitive disorders in late life,” says Asst. Professor Feng Lei from the Department of Psychological Medicine at National University of Singapore's (NUS) Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.

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The longitudinal study involved 957 Chinese adults aged 55 years or older. The team found that drinking tea regularly reduces the risk of cognitive decline in the elderly by 50%, while APOE e4 gene carriers who are genetically at risk of developing Alzheimer's may have their cognitive impairment risk cut by as much as 86%.

The researchers also found that theneuroprotective role of tea is not limited to a particular type of tea, so long as the tea is brewed from tea leaves, such as green, black (e.g. English Breakfast and Earl Grey), or oolong tea.

“While the study was conducted on Chinese elderly, the results could apply to other races as well,” explains Prof. Lei.

“Our findings have important implications for dementia prevention. Despite high quality drug trials, effective pharmacological therapy for neurocognitive disorders such as dementia remains elusive and current prevention strategies are far from satisfactory.”

He adds:

"Based on current knowledge, this long term benefit of tea consumption is due to the bioactive compounds in tea leaves, such as catechins, theaflavins, thearubigins and L-theanine. These compounds exhibit anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potential and other bioactive properties that may protect the brain from vascular damage and neurodegeneration. Our understanding of the detailed biological mechanisms is still very limited so we do need more research to find out definitive answers."

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In the study, participants, who were community-living elderly, self-reported their tea consumption from 2003 to 2005. Until 2010, these adults were evaluated on their cognitive function using standardised tools at regular intervals of two years.

Researchers also collected information on their lifestyles, medical conditions, physical and social activities. The team carefully controlled these potential confounding factors in statistical models to ensure the potency of the findings.

The long term benefit of teadrinking is thought to be from bioactive compounds found in tea leaves. These compounds may have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

It is also thought that other bioactive properties of tea may shield the brain from neurodegeneration and vascular damage.

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“Our understanding of the detailed biological mechanisms is still very limited so we do need more research to find out definitive answers,” explains Prof. Lei.

The team is planning to conduct further studies to better understand the impact of Asian diet on cognitive health in ageing. The researchers are also eager to examine the effects of the bioactive compounds in tea and test them more meticulously through the assessment of their biological markers.

The findings were published in the scientific journal The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging.

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Dementia Caregivers Want Robots for Joy and Sorrow to Take Care of Patients

Example of one of the robots designed by caregivers (Image Credit: Healthcare Robotics Lab/University of California San Diego)

A bit of robotic assistance can help people with dementia and their caregivers. Robots current available for the elderly help them around the house but there aren’t many robots that assist people with dementia. So, researchers at the University of California, San Diego wanted to find out what kinds of robots would actually help. They spent six months co-designing robots with informal caregivers for people with dementia, such as family members. 

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They found that caregivers wanted the robots to fulfill two major roles: support positive moments shared by caregivers and their loved ones; and lessen caregivers' emotional stress by taking on difficult tasks, such as answering repeated questions and restricting unhealthy food.


“Caregivers conceived of robots not only managing difficult aspects of caregiving -- but also for supporting joyful and fun activities,” said Laurel Riek, a professor of computer science at UC San Diego, and the paper's senior author.


For the study, the research team led by Riek built relationships with three different dementia day care centers in San Diego County, reportsUC-San Diego.

Image: Creative commons

Researchers conducted a series of interviews and hands-on workshops with caregivers.

• Based on the results of the six-month long community design process, the team identified various characteristics and designs a robot should have to support the caregivers and patients with dementia:
• Robots should help redirect conversations when repetitive questioning becomes burdensome
• Robots should be integrated into everyday objects that the people with dementia are already familiar with, or borrow features from those objects.
• Robots should be able to adapt to new situations and to the behavior of the person with dementia.
• Robots should be able to learn from end users, and customize and personalize their interaction and responses.
• Robots should have human-like components. That is not to say that they should look human. Rather the machines could, for example, use a real human voice or face.

·       Robots should have human-like components. That is not to say that they should look human. Rather the machines could, for example, use a real human voice or face.

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The researchers presented their findings at the Human Robot Interaction conference in South Korea.

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Poor sleep increases Alzheimer’s brain proteins

A single night of poor sleep can cause a spike in brain proteins linked to Alzheimer’s disease, a new study reports.

Researchers from the U.S. and the Netherlands have found that sleep helps the body clear away two compounds in the brain, called amyloid and tau, and interrupted, poor sleep may cause too much of them to build up.

While the study doesn't show that poor sleep causes Alzheimer's, it adds one more piece to the puzzle of what causes dementia. [Read more Study:Access to nature makes men and seniors sleep better]

The team believes that the findings back the notion that chronic poor sleep in midlife could elevate the risk of developing Alzheimer's later in life.

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“When people had their slow-wave sleep disrupted, their amyloid levels increased by about 10 percent,” says study leader Dr. Yo-El Ju of Washington University in St. Louis.

Although scientists knew there was a connection between dementia and poor sleep, it wasn’t clear whether dementia was driving insomnia or vice versa.

The study was jointly conductedby researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis; Stanford University in California, in the U.S., and Radboud University Medical Centre in the Netherlands.

Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that progresses rapidly. It is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for about 70% of all dementia cases. The disease affects memory, decision-making, language, thinking, and speech.

The brains of people with Alzheimer's disease feature two hallmarks of the disease – plaques of amyloid protein and tangles of tau protein. These plaques and tangles causes neuron cells to die.

In the UK, around 850,000 people are currently living with dementia, and the majority have Alzheimer’s disease, for which there is no cure. Although the number of dementia cases is dropping as people adopt healthier lifestyles, the number of people living with the illness is expected to rise to 1.2 million by 2040 because of the ageing population. [Read more Whatcauses aging? Can the process be slowed?]

More than a third of Britons also sleep for less than 6 hours a night, according to The Sleep Council.

For their study, the researchers sought to identify the most important phase of sleep.

“What we did was allow people to sleep a normal amount of time, but we prevented them from getting deep sleep or what is called slow-wave sleep,” Ju told NBC News.

“When we interrupted just the slow-wave sleep part, they still had an increase in amyloid. So this tells us it's getting the deep slow-wave sleep that's important for reducing the levels of amyloid.”

Ju and colleagues recruited 22 healthy adults aged between 35 and 65. All the participants reported experiencing no sleep problems and had no cognitive impairments.

The participants showed up in a controlled sleep lab. Half were allowed to sleep normally, while the other half were constantly kept in shallow sleep. [Read more Newprotein target may reverse memory loss in Alzheimer’s]

“As soon as they got into slow-wave sleep, they got a beep. And the beeps got louder and louder and louder until they came out of the deep sleep,” says Prof. Ju.

“It was pretty harsh.”

The participants didn’t realize their sleep had been interrupted, and this went on for the entire night.

The participants’ spinal fluid was analyzed in the morning.

“When people had their slow wave sleep disrupted, their amyloid levels increased by about 10 percent,” Prof. Ju says.

The subjects were also fitted with sleep monitors to measure theirsleep at home. Participants who experienced poor sleep at home were found to have higher levels of a second Alzheimer’s related protein called tau. [Read more Scientistsreport significant breakthrough in anti-aging]

Prof. Ju says they were not surprised to see that tau levels didn’t increase after only one night of poor sleep whereas this did cause amyloid levels to rise, since tau levels tend to change more slowly.

“But we could see, when the participants had several bad nights in a row at home that their tau levels had risen,” she adds.

Prof. Ju concludes by saying:

“At this point, we can't say whether improving sleep will reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer's. All we can really say is that bad sleep increases levels of some proteins that are associated with Alzheimer's disease. But a good night's sleep is something you want to be striving for anyway.”

Next, the team plans to study whether treating obstructive sleep apnea will improve people's slow-wave sleep and affect amyloid levels. Sleep apnea is a common cause of sleep disruption. People with this condition have a higher risk of developing dementia.

The study was published in the journal Brain.

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