Loss of smell, a sign of dementia

ADULTS, WHO also sleep for longer than nine hours, are also at risk. CHANGES IN behavioural patterns should also be treated as warning signs.

Next time you see a friend or a relative sniffing a food packet for a long time at a supermarket, it is perhaps time to take a medical test. The warning signs of dementia might appear even ten years before the recognised symptoms such as shaking fingers starts. Doctors say that treating these early symptoms can significantly slow down the progression of the disease.

Dr Sudhir Kumar, a neurologist, said, “Dementia is a condition where the functions controlling the brain are affected. Patients begin to forget things and basic calculations, unable to identify pictures and cannot take care of themselves. The temporal lobe of the brain dealing with memory is affected.” Head injuries and strokes due to a decreased blood flow to the brain could lead to neurodegenerative disorders.

Recent studies suggest that a decreased sense of smell and prolonged hours of sleep signal the start of the neurodegenerative disease, dementia.

Dr Deepika Sirineni, a neurologist, said, “The link between one’s olfactory senses and the brain is important. Dementia causes weakening of the olfactory nerve.”

A study in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society stated that the sensory function is an important indicator of brain health and a poor sense of smell will double the risk of dementia in five years.

Adults, who also sleep for longer than nine hours, are also at risk. Neurologists noted that the improper division of protein amyloid leads to beta amyloid which is harmful to the neurons of the brain. “There are studies suggesting that patients are sleeping longer to combat the build-up of amyloid in the brain. The longer hours of sleep indicate the body’s efforts to remove the toxic protein. Patients with dementia also tend to sleep longer,” said Dr Sudhir.

Changes in behavioural patterns should also be treated as warning signs. Dr Rajasekhar Reddy, a neurologist, said, “Patients suddenly start behaving aggressively. They get irritated and angry towards their family members and friends. Some patients also exhibit signs of depression.”

Neurologists claimed that this change in behavioural pattern stems from the frustration of failing to lead a normal life. Studies claim that the eroding memory process affects the brain’s emotional regulation.