The latest medical evidence does not show that Alzheimer’s can be predicted with any certainty.
But a number of studies suggest that dementia is more likely to develop in those with high levels of oxidative stress, which are associated with high body temperatures and elevated levels of inflammation.
“Dementia is not an immutable disease.
It can progress, worsen, or even become completely unendurable, but we are only starting to understand how it occurs and how the underlying genetic and environmental factors can influence it,” said Dr David Kupferberg, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Michigan.
Dementias are more common in older people, but there are some similarities.
They can be mild or severe, but they can be caused by a number different causes.
They are also often thought to be the result of environmental factors, such as stress and the ageing process.
“The most obvious environmental factors that could be involved in the development of dementia are increased exposure to heat, stress, inflammation, inflammation-induced oxidative stress and oxidative stress-related diseases,” said Professor Kupfferberg.
“And that’s where there are significant clinical studies that show that these are all linked.”
One study looked at the relationships between the symptoms of dementia and the body temperature of the patient.
The results, published in the European Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, suggested that dementia was more likely in people who were exposed to elevated body temperatures in the previous three weeks.
“People who have higher body temperatures have a higher risk of developing dementia, but it’s not necessarily due to the body temperatures that people have,” said the study’s senior author, Dr Kip Thierry Semenza.
“There are other environmental factors like the environment that can play a role in the onset of dementia.”‘
We have to do more research’Dr Semenzo said more research was needed before scientists could draw any firm conclusions.
“We don’t know what the causal relationship is between temperature and disease.
We do know that people with high temperatures have more oxidative stress.
What we’re trying to do in this research is to understand if there is a causal relationship between these environmental factors and Alzheimer’s, or if it’s a risk factor for the disease itself,” he said.”
What we need to do is take a closer look at those factors and see if they are the same risk factors that we are finding in people with dementia.”
“What we’re trying to do in this research is to understand if there is a causal relationship between these environmental factors and Alzheimer’s, or if it’s a risk factor for the disease itself,” he said.
The Australian Health Research Council said that more research needed to be done.
“Our understanding of the relationship between oxidative stress biomarkers and disease progression is still emerging and we need further studies to confirm or refute this idea,” said Associate Professor Lisa Ritchie.
“At the moment we know that there is no significant association between oxidative damage and dementia, so it’s important that we have a much more comprehensive understanding of oxidative health.”
The ABC’s research programme is the ABC’s new science programme, with a focus on science, technology, and social change.
More stories from Australian science