More than 200 people have attended the event to promote Alzheimer's prevention through healthy lifestyle habits.When you take care of yourself, Alzheimer's takes a step back"organized by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation. The meeting, held at the CaixaForum Zaragoza, is part of the entity's social awareness work, a key aspect of its mission along with its contribution to research into the disease.
The Dr Nina Gramunt, a neuropsychologist and expert in training and dissemination from the Pasqual Maragall Foundation, was in charge of leading the session, in which she explained the symptoms of the disease and its origin: “Not all cases of Alzheimer's begin with memory loss. There may be differences in the normal aging process in several aspects, and in some cases the initial symptoms may be related to behavioral or language problems. In the case of memory problems in people with Alzheimer's, they tend to worsen over time in terms of frequency, severity, and consistency.”
In addition, Dr. Gramunt has highlighted the importance of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention.Just as there are different stages of Alzheimer's disease based on neuropathological changes and the evolution of symptoms, we distinguish different prevention measures for each stage. In this sense, it is important to mention that, in primary prevention, which is aimed at avoiding the appearance of neuropathological alterations that can lead to cognitive deterioration, the fundamental way to reduce the risk of suffering from the disease is through the control of cardiovascular risk factors and the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits, such as physical exercise, a balanced diet, cognitive activity and ensuring restful sleep.”.
Likewise, the importance of early detection and cutting-edge research as key elements for secondary and tertiary prevention in the evolution of the disease was detailed. At this point, the work of the Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, the research center of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation, and its Alfa cohort, promoted by the “la Caixa” Foundation, one of the most relevant population samples for Alzheimer's research. “Thanks to the more than 2,700 cognitively healthy people who are part of this longitudinal cohort and voluntarily undergo exhaustive testing, we can get closer to understanding the evolution of the disease and identifying the risk factors that could initiate its development.", has highlighted the Dr. Gramunt.
The role of caregivers
The meeting also discussed the role of caregivers in ensuring the best possible well-being for those suffering from the disease. In 8 out of 10 cases, this role usually falls to the family, who devote around 70 hours a week to caring for the person with Alzheimer's.
In this situation, promoting self-care and the physical and mental health of caregivers is essential to ensure adequate care for the person with Alzheimer's. For this reason, the expert has highlighted initiatives such as the online program "Learn to take care of yourself and others”, through which the Pasqual Maragall Foundation creates support groups for family caregivers in Aragon and throughout the country, offering resources and tools for managing the day-to-day life of a person affected by the disease, fundamentally promoting the well-being of those who care for them.
