Who Is At Risk

Alzheimer's disease (AD) develops as a result of complex interactions among multiple risk factors:

• Advancing age is the greatest risk. After age 65, the chance of getting the disease doubles every five years, reaching 50 percent in adults age 85 and older
• Women are at higher risk of developing AD. In fact, two-thirds of people over age 65 with AD are woman, which is partly due to the fact that women live longer than men
• Having a family member with AD makes it more likely that one will get AD. Much of the risk is due to a protein found in the blood and brain called APOE-4
• Some underlying medical conditions, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol are linked to AD
• Stress, head trauma and obesity are also associated with AD

Reduce your risk for brain disease

One of the biggest misconceptions about Alzheimer's and other brain disorders is that the onset of these diseases is out of our control. In fact, studies have shown there are at least seven risk factors that are modifiable - that we can control to reduce risk of cognitive decline. They are:

• Physical Inactivity
• Depression
• Smoking
• Diabetes

• Cognitive inactivity
• Midlife hypertension
• Midlife obesity

It is estimated that up to half of all Alzheimer's cases worldwide may be attributed to these risk factors. At the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, we provide strategies to reduce risk for dementia.

About 40% of cases of Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) result from genetic causes. Risks for FTD in the other 60% are unknown.

Huntington's disease (HD) is inherited and 50% of each generation develops the disease. There are no other known risk factors for HD.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is neither directly inherited nor contagious. There are clusters of MS cases in certain areas of the world. Factors related to these clusters include gender, genetics, age, geography and ethnicity. Observations about MS:

• MS is significantly more common in women than in men
• MS crosses all ethnic groups, but is more common in Caucasians of northern European ancestry
• MS is more common in northern latitudes and exposure to vitamin D in sunlight may offer some protective effect

Advancing age is the single greatest risk factor for Parkinson's disease. Other factors:

• Men have a slightly higher risk than women
• Family history: individuals with an affected first-degree relative have approximately double the risk