Who is at risk for Alzheimer’s disease?
There are many known risk factors of Alzheimer’s disease, unfortunately, there equally as many misconceptions circulating around these risk factors as well. A recently published article on MedicineNet.com discusses the major risk factors of Alzheimer’s disease and addresses some of the most common misconceptions.
The greatest risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease is increased age. That is not a misconception. The percentage of the population diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease rapidly increases with age. 10% of the population of over 65 years old has Alzheimer’s disease while that percentage jumps to 50% with the population over 85 years old.
Many myths arise in regards to the relation of genetics to Alzheimer’s disease. Many feel that genetics have no effect on Alzheimer’s disease; in fact many feel that age is the only risk factor associated with Alzheimer’s disease. This notion is false. As previously discussed, old age is the greatest risk factor but there are a number of other factors that need to be taken into account. Genetic mutations account for half of the causes of early on set (between the age of 40 and 50) Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, the children of early on set Alzheimer’s disease patients are 50% more likely to develop it.
There are also multiple other risk factors such as high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and elevated levels of cholesterol. To find out more about the possible risk factors of Alzheimer’s disease visit NorthShore University HealthSystem’s Neuroscience department.
