Queen Silvia of Sweden talks to inpatient Margarete Weier, 79, during the opening of the first German section in a hospital for dementia patients on October 17, 2009 in Cologne, Germany. (Photo : Getty Images/ Rolf Vennenbernd)
There was no cure for Alzheimer's disease until a new study revealed that it could be possible. A group of scientists from UCLA and Buck Institute for Research on Aging revealed that memory loss in Alzheimer's patients could be reversed.
The small study conducted on 10 patients with Alzheimer's showed an improvement in their memories and sustained an improvement over the months. The result was the product of the combined therapeutic program, including brain stimulation, diet changes, sleep, exercise, and incorporation of vitamins and minerals.
The findings, published in the online edition of the journal Aging revealed that 9 out of the patients with Alzheimer's disease displayed improvement in their cognitive function three to six months after the test and they were able to go back to work. One patient who was diagnosed with late stage Alzheimer's had no improvement.
Study leader Dr. Dale Bredesen expressed his hope that the study would be the way to solve the long mystery of Alzheimer's disease that was discovered more than 100 years ago. There was no treatment or single drug that has been found to cure or slow down the progress of the neurological disease, and Bredesen believes that a complex approach is needed to possibly treat the disease.
"The existing Alzheimer's drugs affect a single target, but Alzheimer's disease is more complex," Bredesen said in the UCLA press release. "Imagine having a roof with 36 holes in it, and your drug patched one hole very well. The drug may have worked, and a single hole may have been fixed, but you still have 35 other leaks, and so the underlying process may not be affected much."
Alzheimer's is a form of dementia that affects the behavior, thinking and memory of an individual. The symptoms gradually progress over time and often affect one's ability to do daily tasks.
More than 5 million people Americans are affected with Alzheimer's. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S. accounted for 1 in 3 deaths in seniors. In 2016, the disease and other forms of dementia are predicted to cost the country $236 billion.
The findings of the study are good news for everyone, but Bredesen revealed that the result should be followed by another more extensive study. He encouraged that the results should be replicated.
Check out the video below on one study about possible treatment to memory loss of patients with Alzheimer's:
