MENTAL HEALTH

Understanding DEMENTIA

Beth Amato talks to the experts about the difference between lzheimer’s is a form of dementia that results in significant cognitive impairment. It is a particularly brutal and progressive disease, distressing to sufferers and their families, according to Dr Ryan Wagner, a research fellow at the University of a Alzheimer’s and dementia Witwatersrand and Medical Research Council’s Agincourt Research Unit.

Wagner says the disease starts out with the loss of memory and confusion. Alzheimer’s eventually attacks the part of the brain that controls walking, coordination and eating. Mood swings and aggression are also typical characteristics of the disease.

Alzheimer’s, says Wagner, is the most common form of dementia. “About 80 per cent of people with dementia have Alzheimer’s disease. Dementia is an umbrella term that refers to illnesses of cognition, including Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases. Memory, concentration, decision-making and learning are all impacted. Dementia disproportionately affects older people.”

A GROWING PROBLEM

The incidence of Alzheimer’s is increasing globally and in South Africa, and the reason is two-fold, says Wagner. “The South African population is getting older.

In 2012, 7.8 per cent of the South African population was 60 years or older. By 2050, this is expected nearly to double to 14.8 per cent. The second reason for the increased incidence is a result of the changing ways in which we live our lives.” South Africa is beset with high levels of hypertension and diabetes, often caused by eating diets high in sugar and salt, which increase the risk of Alzheimer’s. More people are also living sedentary lifestyles, says Wagner. But even though there are no drugs or procedures that cure Alzheimer’s and other forms

Dr Ryan Wagner of dementia, there is hope. “There are simple things we can do to prevent or slow down the progression of dementia,” says Wagner. “A recent Lancet Commission report found that 12 risk factors are responsible for 40 per cent of the world’s dementias. Some of these risk factors are behaviours that we can control, including maintaining a healthy weight, controlling our blood pressure, minimising diabetes, stopping smoking, avoiding excessive alcohol consumption and preventing head injuries,” says Wagner.

In addition, doing crossword and sudoku puzzles, and reading are good for the brain, adds Wagner. “The brain is a muscle: the more you exercise it, the healthier it will be.”

NASAL SPRAY TO SLOW THE PROGRESSION OF ALZHEIMER’S

While there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, a team of Wits University scientists in the School of Molecular and Cell Biology discovered that a nasal spray can slow down the debilitating illness, and thus improve the sufferer’s quality of life.

Proteins in the brain group together and deposit amyloid-beta plaque in brain cells. The scientists thus developed an antibody, administered nasally, that effectively targets the proteins grouping together. This significantly reduces amyloid plaque formation, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Source: Wits University

BUSTING MYTHS around depression

Professor Depression is not something that goes away by itself or that Garth Stevens a person can deal with on their own, explains Prof Garth Stevens, dean of the Faculty of Humanities at Wits University and the president of the Psychological Society of South Africa. “If we don’t treat depression with medication, psychotherapy, cognitive behavioural therapy and such, the disease will linger, with serious consequences.”

It is often the stigma of mental illness that prevents people from seeking treatment. “Depression really goes against our Western ideals of a person always being in control and having agency in every situation,” says Stevens. “Depression is debilitating, and can’t be willed away,” he says.

Stevens notes that circumstantial factors, like bereavement, often have characteristics of depression, but are different in that time usually heals the pain and sadness that goes with the event. “Grief is a process that may resolve. Depression is not.”

Another myth is that depression is associated with lethargy and sadness. A depressed person can also exhibit aggression and become agitated. Many people, Stevens says, feel highly irritable and have ruminating thoughts rather than a slowing of the mind.

Women have also been associated with having higher rates of depression, but this is not an accurate picture of depression incidence. “We see a lot more men, and indeed young children, experiencing depression,” says Stevens. He notes that mental illness is also under-reported and that there must be efforts made to improve this.

NEEDING HELP?

If you need a referral to a psychologist, psychiatrist or support group, please call The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) on 011 234 4837 or 0800 20 50 26 and speak to a trained counselor who can assist you further. Offi ces are open 7 days a week from 8am – 8pm. Fax number: 011 234 8182 Substance abuse line 0800 12 13 14 is available 24 hours a day. Or alternatively email Zane on zane@sadag.org