Dementia: Health and Wellness Essay

Health and Wellness
Dementia
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Introduction
Dementia and cognitive injury have become a phenomenon among the old generation. Medics and researchers have described Dementia as the main threat to the older generation. Apart from influencing the quality of life on the afflicted patients, the immediate family members are also not spared, partners or children may as well be reduced into caregivers since the victims can no longer care for themselves. Financial constrains can also be realized among the family. Although no cure by medics have been found on dementia and cognitive impairment, Research findings by have highlighted the importance of aerobic exercise on reducing the risk of dementia and brain aging (Ahlskog, 2011).
Dementia, which in Latin is used to mean “madness”, is depicted by cognitive impairment of the previously normal person beyond what can be perceived as the normal old age. This ailment occurs because of brain injury, which in turn results into cognitive impairment. Sadock et al, (2008) explains that Dementia is far much common in geriatric people, that is, those beyond 65 years of age, although it can also happen earlier than that (52). Sadock et al also continues to explain that Dementia consists of a set of symptoms and signs and not really some specific syndrome or disease. The cognitive areas that are mostly affected by this syndrome include language, attention, memory and solving problems. For one to be identified as having this disease, symptoms must show themselves for at least six months.
Causes of Dementia
Among the most common causes of dementia disease as identified by scholars are Alzheimer's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, vascular ailment, front temporal disintegration syndromes, and other disorders. Sadly, there is no cure that has been found in the medical sense that could cure effectively this problem of dementia or age-related cognitive injury. A study by Ahlskog, Geda, and Graff-Radford & Petersen found out that bodily exercise can be employed in reducing the risk of dementia and brain aging among the older generation.
In most cases, Dementia occurs after degeneration of the cerebral cortex. The cerebral cortex is part of the brain, which has responsibilities for personality, actions, thoughts and memories. It is the inaction of the brain cells in this part of the brain, which results into cognitive impairment, a notable characteristics of Dementia. Some of the disorders that lead to dementia are the impairment of the neurological brain structures and the blood vessels. Some of the dementia signs such as brain tumors, normal pressure hydrocephalus are caused by metabolic infections. Excessive alcohol consumption is also another cause of dementia
Results
Specific types of brain injury may result into irreversible cognitive injury. Traumatic impairment of the brain may in turn lead to the general damage of the white substance found on the brain. Further, the condition may result into low supply of oxygen and blood in the brain which could further lead to strokes,  HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_hypoxia" \o "Cerebral hypoxia" -ischemic injury, hypoxic, and extradural hemorrhage. It could also lead to infections such as  HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encephalitis" \o "Encephalitis" encephalitis, and meningitis which severely affects the brain, affecting the cognitive abilities (Galvin, 2006).
Treatment for Dementia
Dementia treatment and therapy depends on what caused it. There is no cure for the disease in its most progressive stage. However, there are particular therapies that could be used to slow down the progression of the disease or improve the symptoms on a temporal basis. Among the drugs that could be used to treat the disease are similar to those used to treat Alzheimer condition. Many of the therapies of Dementia cannot stop or reverse the progression of the disease, there are however those which can reduce the disease progression. They include glucose control in an individual’s body, activities that stimulate an individual’s intellect, control of homocysteine and choresterol level, control of inflammation and other treatments (Galvin, 2006).
The kind of Diet which a person suffering dementia takes should also be keenly looked into. This is because what such a person takes as his or her food may have an impact on the health of the brain as well as the heart. Evidence from research indicates that the nutrition and the pattern of eating may be essential in brain protection. For instance, diet such as whole grains, red meat, vegetables, fruits, shellfish, fish, olive oil, nuts and health fats is quite useful in protecting the brain.
In their analysis, Ahlskog et al establi...