Dementia Specialist Brisbane
With the aging population in Brisbane, there is an increase in consultations on dementia. Dementia is a decline in mental capacity that interferes with an individual’s day-to-day life. Patients who usually consult their primary care physician are concerned with memory and mood changes. Tests are administered to determine if there are physical causes contributing to the symptoms.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common kind of dementia and accounts for 60 to 80 percent of the cases. Vascular dementia is the second most common type and occurs after a stroke. However, it must be noted that there are several other conditions that contribute to dementia, such as thyroid problems and vitamin deficiencies.
What are the Symptoms of Dementia?
The symptoms of dementia vary and impairment in at least two of the following mental functions can be considered dementia: memory, communication, and language, ability to focus and pay attention, reasoning and judgment, and visual perception. Individuals afflicted with dementia may difficulties with their short-term memory and doing day-to-day activities.
This mental condition starts out slowly and gets worse over time. If someone within your circle is experiencing these symptoms, it is best to get a professional evaluation to determine the root cause. Sometimes, the underlying illnesses are treatable conditions. In the event that symptoms lead to dementia, early diagnosis would give the patient the opportunity to get treatment and improve his or her quality of life.
What Causes Dementia?
Dementia happens because of damage to the brain cells. As a result of this damage, the brain cells are having difficulties communicating with each other thus affecting the thinking, behavior, and feelings of individuals.
The type of dementia experienced by a person depends on the region of the brain affected and can be evident in the symptoms experienced by the patient. Along with the symptoms are possible conditions that may be causing it:
- Depression
- Side effects of medication
- Excessive drinking of alcohol
- Thyroid problems
- Vitamin deficiencies
Addressing these can improve the symptoms of dementia if these are determined to be the underlying causes.
How Can Dementia Be Treated?
Treating dementia can vary, depending on what’s causing the mental disability. In most cases, there is no cure available. However, there are available drugs that can improve the symptoms.
There has been a drive for research in identifying potential treatments for Dementia. Doctors and researchers are encouraging individuals who are afflicted with Dementia to participate in clinical studies to help identify treatments suitable for the mental disability.
How to Prevent Dementia?
There are risk factors, such as genetics and age, that are unavoidable. However, researchers found some potential risk factors that can prevent dementia such as cardiovascular risk factors, physical fitness, and diet.
Cardiovascular risk factors can damage the blood vessels, hence depriving the brain of vital food and oxygen. The changes in the blood vessels in the brain contribute to becoming high risk to stroke, which leads to vascular dementia. This can be prevented by taking care of your heart such as avoiding smoking, eating a balanced diet, and monitoring cholesterol and blood sugar.
Having regular physical exercise also benefits the brain through an increased blood and oxygen flow.
The diet a person takes on impacts the brain as well. Not only it affects the mood but also affects the heart health, which is connected with each other. Mediterranean diet is recommended to maintain a healthy heart. It only includes little red meat and more on the grains, fruits, vegetables, seafood, nuts, and healthy fats.
At Ubuntu Medical, we also provide Mental Health Care Plans.