Ongoing stress is blamed for contributing to an array of health problems – from depression to high blood pressure. Now researchers say it’s also linked with a type of memory decline that’s often a prelude to Alzheimer’s disease.
stress triggers Alzheimer’s disease
Can high stress raise your risk of Alzheimer’s?
In the new study of older adults, feeling stressed out increased the likelihood that people would go on to develop a form of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), according to scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System. People with MCI face a greater risk of eventually developing Alzheimer’s.
The researchers analyzed data from an ongoing study of adults age 70 and over from Bronx County, New York. All were dementia-free at the start of the study.
The participants were followed for an average of 3.6 years, and over the course of the study, 71 of the 507 were diagnosed with amnesiac mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), the most common form of the condition.
The greater a participant’s stress level – which was measured using standardized stress tests – the greater their risk for developing cognitive impairment, the researchers reported. An MCI diagnosis was based on standardized clinical criteria including the results of memory recall tests and reports of forgetfulness from the participants or others.
High levels of stress were associated with a 30 percent greater risk of cognitive impairment, the authors reported in Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders.
“Our study provides strong evidence that perceived stress increases the likelihood that an older person will develop aMCI,” said Dr. Richard Lipton, senior author of the study and vice chair of neurology at Einstein and Montefiore, in a press statement.
Keith Fargo, the Director of Scientific Programs and Outreach at the Alzheimer’s Association, said it’s important to note that the study did not look at Alzheimer’s disease dementia.
“Instead, the authors measured new cases of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), a condition characterized by a decline in memory that is measurable and noticeable but not severe enough to disrupt basic activities of daily living. In many people, aMCI appears to lead up to dementia, but in other people aMCI remains stable or even reverts to normal cognition,” Fargo said.
A few other studies have measured stress and risk for aMCI and found results that are similar to this new research, Fargo said.
“According to the scientific literature, there appears to be some kind of connection between high levels of stress and later developing dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease,” said Fargo. But he explained that it is not yet clear whether the stress causes Alzheimer’s, whether the decline into Alzheimer’s disease is what causes the high levels of stress, or if both issues are involved.
Fargo said, “This observational study can only tell us whether there is an association between stress and later being diagnosed with aMCI. It cannot tell us whether stress or perceived stress cause aMCI.”
Because stress is treatable, the authors said the results suggest that detecting and treating stress in older people might help delay or even prevent the onset of MCI and perhaps Alzheimer’s.
“Fortunately, perceived stress is a modifiable risk factor for cognitive impairment, making it a potential target for treatment,” Lipton said. “Stress management techniques … could include physical activity, meditation, yoga.”
Fargo said more research is needed to determine whether interventions aimed at modifying stress can delay or potentially even prevent cognitive decline. But because high stress can lead to a host of health problems, it’s important people learn to manage it.
“In people with Alzheimer’s dementia and their caregivers, symptoms such as anxiety and depression can be particularly debilitating, so stress management may be even more important for them and their caregivers,” Fargo said.
He noted that there is strong evidence showing regular physical activity and management of cardiovascular risk factors – especially diabetes, obesity, smoking and high blood pressure – can reduce the risk of cognitive decline as people age and may also reduce the risk of dementia.
“Given that physical activity can have beneficial effects on stress levels and also helps control cardiovascular risk factors, keeping an eye on stress levels is likely to be beneficial to our cognitive health as we age,” Fargo said.
Stress in older adults may trigger mild cognitive impairment
Stress is a possible trigger of mild cognitive impairment among older adults, new research from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System says.
In a study published in the journal Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders, those prone to higher level of stress were more than twice as likely to experience cognitive impairment than those who are not.
“Our study provides strong evidence that perceived stress increases the likelihood that an older person will develop aMCI [amnestic mild cognitive impairment], said lead author Dr. Richard Lipton. “Fortunately, perceived stress is a modifiable risk factor for cognitive impairment, making it a potential target for treatment.”
To conduct the research, scientists analyzed data collected from 507 adults over the age of 70 enrolled in the Einstein Aging Study located in Bronx County, N.Y. During the study, 71 people were diagnosed with aMCI; gender, depression and education were also factors.
Because of the treatable nature of stress, researchers believe tending to anxiety problems in older adults might help lessen the rate of those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the United States, which is roughly 470,000 annually.
“Perceived stress reflects the daily hassles we all experience, as well as the way we appraise and cope with these events,” said co-author Mindy Katz in a statement. “Perceived stress can be altered by mindfulness-based stress reduction, cognitive-behavioral therapies and stress-reducing drugs. These interventions may postpone or even prevent an individual’s cognitive decline.”
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports symptoms of Alzheimer’s first appear in most adults after the age of 60 as risk increases as individuals age. It is known to be spurred by other factors such as family history and brain changes throughout life. Research into the correlation between the brain disease and education, diet and environment is ongoing.
‘Stress precursor to pre-Alzheimer’s condition in elderly’
Feeling stressed out increases the chances of elderly people developing mild cognitive impairment – often a prelude to full-blown Alzheimer’s disease, a study found.
Scientists found that highly stressed participants were more than twice as likely to become impaired than those who were not.
Because stress is treatable, the results suggest that detecting and treating stress in older people might help delay or even prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s.
The study looked at the connection between chronic stress and amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), the most common type of MCI, which is primarily characterized by memory loss.
“Our study provides strong evidence that perceived stress increases the likelihood that an older person will develop aMCI,” said senior study author Richard Lipton from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.
“Fortunately, perceived stress is a modifiable risk factor for cognitive impairment, making it a potential target for treatment,” Lipton said.
Many Alzheimer’s patients first experience mild cognitive impairment – a pre-dementia condition that significantly increases the risk of developing Alzheimer’s in the following months or years.
“Perceived stress reflects the daily hassles we all experience, as well as the way we appraise and cope with these events,” said study first author, Mindy Katz.
“Perceived stress can be altered by mindfulness-based stress reduction, cognitive-behavioural therapies and stress-reducing drugs. These interventions may postpone or even prevent an individual’s cognitive decline,” Katz added.
The researchers studied data collected from 507 people enrolled in the Einstein Ageing Study (EAS), a community-based cohort of older adults.
The findings were published online in Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders.