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Health May 2014

Aid for Age

Alzheimer’s Toll on Women often a Double Whammy

By Tait Trussell

The Alzheimer’s Association has just discovered a woman’s lifetime risk of developing killer Alzheimer’s at age 65 or older is one in six. This compares with men’s chance of being struck with Alzheimer’s with a one in eleven chance.

Two-and-a-half times as many women as men give intensive care 24 hours a day to someone with Alzheimer’s disease, usually their husband.

But new research has startled American women. It has found that the women caretakers are more at risk than their husbands. The Alzheimer’s Association has just discovered a woman’s lifetime risk of developing killer Alzheimer’s at age 65 or older is one in six.

This compares with men’s chance of being struck with Alzheimer’s with a one in eleven chance. The additional finding that senior women are twice as likely to become Alzheimer’s victims compared with developing breast cancer is a double shock.

It is women’s fate to have a lingering fear of breast cancer and a disfiguring mastectomy. Pride in the beauty of women’s breasts and the knowledge that men tend to stare at a woman’s breasts often before looking into their face gives breasts a special attraction.

Age is the greatest factor for gender differences among patients with Alzheimer’s. It is not the only reason, however. According to Maria Carrillo, vice president of Medical and Scientific Relations for the Alzheimer’s Association, researchers are analyzing genetic and hormonal differences.

A CNN.com story tells of Carol Moore, 75. She said she didn’t let the possibility of breast cancer worry her because she was vigilant about her health. As for her forgetfulness, she figured it was merely part of getting older. In 2012, she had a battery of tests for part of an Alzheimer’s study. Much to her shock, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

She recalled her fear when the neurologist showed her the MRI of her brain and pointed out the deterioration.

Carrillo was quoted as saying that women are more likely to provide round-the-clock care including feeding, clothing, and diapering. Alzheimer’s patients need care for four to seven years, sometimes longer.

Some 20% of women, as compared with 3% of men, switch from full-time to part-time work because of their responsibilities as caregivers. Additionally, women are more likely to take a leave of absence from work or stop working altogether. They also report feeling more isolated and depressed than their male counterparts.

Another surprise from the report was that 24% of women and men mistakenly believe they are only at risk for Alzheimer's disease if they have a family member with it. The cultural breakdown is surprising as well, because 33% of Hispanics had this mistaken belief and nearly half of Asians did.

Risk factors for Alzheimer’s include genetics and increasing age. “Anyone with a brain is at risk,” said Angela Geiger, chief strategy officer for the Alzheimer’s Association.

Staying mentally, socially, and physically active, and eating a brain-healthy diet can help, Carrillo also says. Women can reduce the risk factors by reducing blood sugar levels if diabetic, and blood pressure. A new initiative is being started by the Association, asking a million women to go to the Association’s website and show what they are doing to reduce the chances of getting Alzheimer’s.  [www.alz.org].

At present, there are 15.5 million U.S. caregivers who are providing 17.7 billion hours of unpaid care, frequently at the risk and detriment of their own health. The impact of dementia caregiving resulted in increased healthcare costs for Alzheimer’s caregivers, researchers calculated.

 

Tait Trussell is an old guy and fourth-generation professional journalist who writes extensively about aging issues among a myriad of diverse topics.

Meet Tait