Here we set out five brief posts concerning links which either bring up to date earlier posts on Strong Brain, or which are simply of interest in and of themselves.

☞ Signs: Onset of Dementia

Our recent post Distilled: Signs of the Onset of Dementia listed 18 possible signs of the onset of dementia. The excellent article Recognizing Alzheimer’s Disease adds to that by providing a discussion of early warning signs and a view of diagnosis.

Category: Diagnosis & Tests

☞ Microbiome & Brain

Quite recently, it has become apparent that the microbiome (all the microbes resident in an organism) can affect the brain, including the amount of amyloid beta clumps and exhibition of autistic behaviors. Much of the work has been done with mice (surprise!), but some also on humans. This is a quite interesting article on these investigations:

Germs in Your Gut Are Talking to Your Brain. Scientists Want to Know What They’re Saying.

Category: Neuro-Psych

☞ More on Processed Foods

Recently we published a somewhat lengthy post Best To Avoid Over-Processed Foods. The article below adds to that post:

What’s so bad about processed foods? Scientists offer clues.

Category: Diet

☞ Cancer Treatment and Dementia

A very large U.S. study of prostate cancer patients in their 70’s demonstrates a notable increased risk of Alzheimer’s among patients who received Androgen Deprivation Therapy.

Dementia tied to hormone-blocking prostate cancer treatment

Hormone Therapy for Prostate Cancer Tied to Dementia

Original research:

Association Between Androgen Deprivation Therapy Use and Diagnosis of Dementia in Men With Prostate Cancer

Category: Risk Factors

☞ Dementia Screening During Wellness Exams

The article Alzheimer’s Screenings Often Left Out Of Seniors’ Wellness Exams discusses the situation vis-a-vie dementia screening during annual wellness exams for seniors. The number of seniors experiencing them, and the number of physicians administering them, are relatively low, for a variety of reasons discussed in the article. Most likely, large-scale routine screening won’t be happening until a moderately inexpensive blood test is widely available.

Category: Diagnosis & Tests

Each group of links has been added to the indicated category.