Common Health Issues Related to Cognitive Changes
Many, many aspects of our health can affect how our brains function, as we age. While the following list is by no means comprehensive, here are some difficulties that are too easily overlooked:
Multiple concussion Injuries -- a known risk factor for some types of dementia
Many people have had one or more concussion injuries during their lifetimes, but for those of us who are older, such injuries were often not noticed or given medical attention, especially during the early years of our lives. Common wisdom at the time suggested that if you didn't get knocked out, a bump on the head was no big deal -- even if your headaches, dizziness, brain fog, etc. lasted for days or weeks. Worse yet, no one knew to tell us that we should not have gone right back to whatever we were doing when we got hurt -- even if that was football practice or a boxing match -- and we now know that concussion symptoms can emerge gradually, and we are more vulnerable to more serious injury, when we've recently been concussed. Finally, being in a car accident in the days before seatbelts and headrests made it much more likely for us to be thrown around the car, and although even doctors didn't know this then, that kind of violent motion alone can cause concussion -- even if you didn't actually hit your head! Bottom line, we may all have had concussion injuries, whether we remember them or not. How many and how serious those injuries actually were can have an impact on our risk of difficulties, as we age.
Sleep difficulties -- can cause cognitive symptoms that mimic dementia, but are often treatable
When we think of sleep difficulty, the first thing that comes to most people's minds is insomnia -- trouble falling asleep. Most of us have had that for one reason or another. Most of us also know what it's like to have to function after a night of not enough sleep -- whether due to crying baby, a snoring bedmate, or a stray smoke detector that inevitably burns through its batteries at 2 am. Sleep difficulties that keep repeating over time are another matter -- We NEED restorative sleep to function at our best, and we also need enough of that restorative sleep on a regular basis. Sleep disorders are sleep difficulties that interfere in significant ways with getting restorative sleep, and they can really cause us trouble, if they aren't diagnosed and properly treated. The trouble is, we may not KNOW we are having a sleep disorder -- because we're asleep (or trying to be) while we're having it! People with sleep apnea, for example, may stop breathing many times a night, and each time, they only partially wake up, as their bodies react to the lack of oxygen -- wrecking their chance at sound, restorative sleep, but not usually alerting them to the problem that causes it. People who walk or talk in their sleep may THINK they're getting a good night's rest, but the fact that their brains are not properly shut down means that isn't likely. People who work different shifts, or who must constantly travel across time zones can also experience sleep difficulties, simply due to the multiple shifts in their sleep-wake cycle. All of these and more require a doctor's diagnosis and treatment, if they are not to cause worsening cognitive difficulties.
Many, many aspects of our health can affect how our brains function, as we age. While the following list is by no means comprehensive, here are some difficulties that are too easily overlooked:
Multiple concussion Injuries -- a known risk factor for some types of dementia
Many people have had one or more concussion injuries during their lifetimes, but for those of us who are older, such injuries were often not noticed or given medical attention, especially during the early years of our lives. Common wisdom at the time suggested that if you didn't get knocked out, a bump on the head was no big deal -- even if your headaches, dizziness, brain fog, etc. lasted for days or weeks. Worse yet, no one knew to tell us that we should not have gone right back to whatever we were doing when we got hurt -- even if that was football practice or a boxing match -- and we now know that concussion symptoms can emerge gradually, and we are more vulnerable to more serious injury, when we've recently been concussed. Finally, being in a car accident in the days before seatbelts and headrests made it much more likely for us to be thrown around the car, and although even doctors didn't know this then, that kind of violent motion alone can cause concussion -- even if you didn't actually hit your head! Bottom line, we may all have had concussion injuries, whether we remember them or not. How many and how serious those injuries actually were can have an impact on our risk of difficulties, as we age.
Sleep difficulties -- can cause cognitive symptoms that mimic dementia, but are often treatable
When we think of sleep difficulty, the first thing that comes to most people's minds is insomnia -- trouble falling asleep. Most of us have had that for one reason or another. Most of us also know what it's like to have to function after a night of not enough sleep -- whether due to crying baby, a snoring bedmate, or a stray smoke detector that inevitably burns through its batteries at 2 am. Sleep difficulties that keep repeating over time are another matter -- We NEED restorative sleep to function at our best, and we also need enough of that restorative sleep on a regular basis. Sleep disorders are sleep difficulties that interfere in significant ways with getting restorative sleep, and they can really cause us trouble, if they aren't diagnosed and properly treated. The trouble is, we may not KNOW we are having a sleep disorder -- because we're asleep (or trying to be) while we're having it! People with sleep apnea, for example, may stop breathing many times a night, and each time, they only partially wake up, as their bodies react to the lack of oxygen -- wrecking their chance at sound, restorative sleep, but not usually alerting them to the problem that causes it. People who walk or talk in their sleep may THINK they're getting a good night's rest, but the fact that their brains are not properly shut down means that isn't likely. People who work different shifts, or who must constantly travel across time zones can also experience sleep difficulties, simply due to the multiple shifts in their sleep-wake cycle. All of these and more require a doctor's diagnosis and treatment, if they are not to cause worsening cognitive difficulties.