News by Subject Social & Behavior

Eating disorders shown by patients with dementia are characterised by a vast range of behaviours that span from preference for sugary foods, binges, increase in appetite, to changes in table manners or in food preferences. This new study confirms the hypothesis that sudden changes in preferences and habits, depend, at least in part, on degeneration of semantic memory, opening up interesting perspectives in the field of research and to develop effective strategies to contrast these behaviors in patients.

A team of researchers led by Yale-NUS College has found evidence that metabolic dysfunction is a primary cause of Alzheimer's disease.

New research from King's College London and The Open University could help explain why memory in old age is much less flexible than in young adulthood. Through experiments in mice the researchers discovered that there were dramatic differences in how memories were stored in old age, compared to young adulthood.

Estrogen has a significant role in overall brain health and cognitive function. That's why so many studies focused on the prevention of cognitive decline consider the effect of reduced estrogen levels during the menopause transition. A new study suggests a cognitive benefit from a longer reproductive window complemented with hormone therapy. Study results are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

In a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, researchers examined information from the European Project on OSteoArthritis (EPOSA) study. They wanted to learn whether there is an association between arthritis and social isolation, and to identify the disease's contribution to social isolation.

Despite the evidence on risk factors for frailty, and the substantial progress that has been made in frailty awareness, the biological mechanisms underlying its development are still far from understood and translation from research to clinical practice remains a challenge. A new paper provides an up-to-date clinical overview on preventing, identifying and managing frailty as well as its global impact and burden.

The UConn Health study followed 199 hypertension patients 75 years of age and older for 3 years.