How Is Dementia Linked to High Blood
Pressure and Alzheimer Disease

I now have a new worry and that is dementia and its link to high blood pressure.

Medical Journals states that this disease is a progressive loss of memory and mental capacity that affects our ability to function.

This condition is not only for individuals of advanced aged and is not a normal consequence of aging.

Some types are reversal and is less common, and with proper diagnosis and treatment the person can return to normal mental function.

And, there are several types of that are irreversible.

Why am I worried?

Depression, reactions to some medications, thyroid disease, Vitamin B12 deficiency, head injury, alcoholism- and we all have a drink, and infections such as Lyme disease are all reversible conditions.

Though all of the above can be life changing they are all treatable, so I am not worried about these types.

But these...

There are several types of irreversible conditions, such as Parkinson and Huntington diseases.

But the most common form is Alzheimer's accounting for up to 70% of all cases, as stated by the Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide.

How Does High Blood Pressure Relate

And, now a new study by Dr. Walter Koroshetz, Deputy Director of NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke states that hypertension is at the top of the list of causing this disease.

How scary is that with more than half the world's population is under stress and have high blood pressure, myself included.

The thought of developing any of these conditions are frightening to me.

Brain Scarring - The Link

High blood pressure readings of 140/90 and higher tends to weaken arteries and also seems to spur on these diseases.

Scientists did a research and noticed that hypertension individuals brains showed a type of scarring, known as white matter lesions, that was linked to the later development of Alzheimer's disease.

The white matter is the connective network of tiny blood vessels of systems within our brains that allows the cells to communicate with each other.

Their researched studies showed that some of the same signs for heart disease like high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes increased the risk.

Scientists first thought that the link was with vascular dementia, which is a series of mini strokes which can affect enough brain tissue to impair thinking and not the scarier classic Alzheimer's disease.

Now they are realizing that most of their patients have a mix of the two.

Now we have a new worry of the effects of having increased blood pressure and its links to these diseases and the quality of our lives as we get older.

Since hearing of this study I have increased by exercising and I'm on a mission to keep my blood pressure under control.

And my new mantra is no scarring of white matter lesion, again....

Return to What is High Blood Pressure from "Dementia".

High Blood Pressure link to Dementia and Alzheimer

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