New Hope for Children of Alzheimer’s Sufferers

New Hope for Children of Alzheimer’s Sufferers

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Lifestyle changes

 

Moderate drinkers also performed better on cognitive¹ and verbal fluency² tests than non-drinkers. Although he would not recommend that people at risk for Alzheimer’s begin drinking, Sager³ said he would not discourage anyone — who can handle a glass or two of wine a day—from drinking. “It’s all moderation,” he said.

 

However, a second study suggests that fruit and vegetable juices may be just as effective. It looked at juice consumption in 1,800 older Japanese men and women in Seattle. Those who drank at least three glasses of juice a week had 75 percent less risk of developing dementia than those who drank less than one glass a week.

 

“This is the first study to try to get at polyphenol exposure,” said Amy Borenstein of the University of South Florida College of Public Health.

 

Polyphenols, also known as flavonoids, are substances found in plants that have antioxidant properties. Borenstein said polyphenols generally are found in higher concentrations in juices than in whole fruits and vegetables.

 

Other factors

 

A third study followed 109 pairs of identical twins in Sweden to find any lifestyle factors associated with developing dementia. “Studying twins allows us to isolate⁴ genetic⁵ and non-genetic factors,” said lead author Margaret Gatz of the University of Southern California and foreign adjunct professor at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.

 

The study found that twins who had suffered a stroke were six times more likely to develop dementia; those who had periodontal disease earlier in life were four times more likely; and those with lower levels of education were 1.6 times more likely.

 

Gum disease is considered a marker for inflammation, which is believed to play a role in brain cell death. Higher levels of education as well as staying mentally active may help people develop more brain reserve power.

 

“Good brain health in old age reflects influences that begin much earlier in life,” Gatz said.

 

Vocabulary Focus

fluency (n) [5fluEnsi] the ability to perform easily, quickly and well

exposure (n) [iks5pEuVE] the instance of experiencing or being affected⁶ by something in a particular situation or place

inflammation (n) [7inflE5meiFEn] a red, painful and often swollen⁷ area in or on a part of the body

 

Specialized⁸ Terms

periodontal (adj) 牙周的；牙龈的 of the gums; relating to something that surrounds or holds the teeth

 

阿尔茨海默症患者子女的新希望

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改变生活方式

有节制的饮酒习惯的人在认知和口头表达流畅性的测验中也表现得比不喝酒的人好。沙杰虽然不建议有罹患阿尔茨海默症风险的人开始饮酒，却说他不会反对那些一天小酌一两杯的人喝酒。他说：“关键在于节制。”   

不过，另一项研究显示果菜汁可能和酒一样有效。此项研究观察西雅图1800位上了年纪的日本老年男性和女性的果汁摄取量，那些一星期至少喝3杯（果菜汁）的人得痴呆症的风险比一星期摄取少于一杯的人少75%。   

“这是第一个针对多酚的接触所做的研究。”南佛罗里达大学公共卫生学院的艾美·伯南斯坦说。   

多酚亦称类黄酮素，是存在于有抗氧化特性的植物中的物质。伯南斯坦说相对于整个水果及蔬菜，果汁中的多酚通常浓度较高。

其它因素   

第三个研究追踪109对瑞典同卵双胞胎，希望发现与罹患痴呆症有关的生活方式因素。“研究双胞胎让我们得以区分基因和非基因因素。”研究报告的主要作者，南加大的玛格丽特·盖兹指出。她也是斯德哥尔摩凯洛林斯卡研究中心的外籍兼职教授。   

研究结果发现双胞胎中，曾中风者得痴呆症的可能性比其它双胞胎高出6倍；早年就有牙周病者则高出4倍；教育程度较低者高出1.6倍。   

牙龈疾病被视为是发炎的指针，一般相信发炎会导致脑细胞死亡。较高的教育程度以及保持心智活跃可能有助于人们培养更多大脑储备能力。   

“老年时健康的大脑，反映的是在人生很早期即种下的影响。”盖兹说。

 

1 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

2 fluency   

n.流畅，雄辩，善辩

参考例句：

• More practice will make you speak with greater fluency.多练习就可以使你的口语更流利。
• Some young children achieve great fluency in their reading.一些孩子小小年纪阅读已经非常流畅。

3 sager   

adj.贤明的，貌似聪明的( sage的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Well, I want those yellow gators that Sager wore a few weeks ago. 好了，我想那些人认为是塞奇几个星期前穿的。 来自互联网

4 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

5 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

8 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。