Distress increases risk of developing Alzheimer's

Main Category: Depression
Also Included In: Alzheimer's / Dementia
Article Date: 09 Dec 2003 - 0:00 PDT

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If you are plagued by negative thoughts, depression and anxiety you are at double the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (than the general population is).

Researchers at Rush University (Chicago, USA) also found that antidepressants reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's.

They said that stress levels tend to remain constant during an individual's life. The hippocampal area of the brain (plays a vital role in learning and memory) undergoes changes when the person has a great deal of stress.

Dr. Robert Wilson (lead researcher) said many of the undesirable effects of stress on the brain can be blocked by drugs. He also stressed than more research is needed before we can determine whether the use of antidepressants could help reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

The scientists studied the brains of 141 people (of which 57 had Alzheimer's who died during the study).

They fond that people who were susceptible to high levels of stress did not always show the signs of the plaques and tangles of protein in the brain (closely linked to Alzheimer's). This enabled them to rule out the theory that high stress levels were an early symptom of Alzheimer's.

Previous studies have also linked Alzheimer's to stress and depression. However, methodological problems had made it difficult to draw firm conclusions.

Professor Clive Ballard (Director at the Alzheimer's Society) said 'This work takes our understanding forward substantially as it highlights stress and mood symptoms as an important trigger of subsequent dementia in a very rigorous long-term follow-up study. There are several possible explanations. Most likely, the stress itself results in an increase in certain hormones, such as cortisol which may be damaging to the brain. Alternatively, an underlying disease process such as damage to the small blood vessels triggers both the depression and the dementia. Unravelling these issues offers the exciting potential to prevent or delay dementia in many at-risk people.'

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