With at least 35-40 million people across the world today suffering from either Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease, per the most conservative estimates, their number is expected to double by 2035 and quadruple by 2050, he warns.
“We all want to live not just long but well: to remain healthy even when elderly. But no effective treatment for Alzheimer’s currently exists, only methods that can mitigate the disease at its early stage,” the academician remarked.
What Can Cause Alzheimer’s?
There is a number of factors that essentially determine the development of neurodegenerative diseases.
One such factor, probably the most well-known, is aging. Neurons, being postmitotic cells, are incapable of division which, along with their “hyperspecialization,” means they lack “certain defense mechanisms,” Illarioshkin explains.
Other factors include neurotoxins that humans inevitable come into contact with.
“A number of studies show that agrichemical toxins, which were previously used aggressively in agriculture, directly cause Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases,” Illarioshkin notes. “The effect of these substances was confirmed by experiments on cell cultures and lab animals: they induce changes reproducing those diseases one for one.”
Yet another factor, described as “unusual” by Illarioshkin, is the effect of infections, with recent studies revealing that people who suffered from COVID-19 in the past are more prone to Alzheimer’s than similarly aged people who did not contract COVID-19.
Other studies identify smoke from wildfires as a potential risk factor: apparently, this smoke contains “dispersed particles of a particular molecular mass that act as a specific factor for the development of Alzheimer’s changes in both humans and animals,” as Illarioshkin put it.
Sergey Illarioshkin
© Photo : Scientific Russia / Elena Librik
The inevitable aging of human tissues is also a factor as it leads to the development of neurodegenerative diseases as the brain's natural defenses gradually erode with time.
That said, there are also mechanisms that do the opposite, with the improvement of the quality of life, the improvement of the education and the associated increase in the level of cognitive activity, and the improvement of healthcare helping stave off neurodegenerative diseases.
How Can Neurodegenerative Diseases Be Beaten?
It is important to keep in check the “traditional diseases” associated with the advanced age, such as high blood pressure, chronic obstructive lung disease and diabetes, Illarioshkin says, arguing the importance of “mobility” as a way to deal with blood pressure and obesity.
“The lack of physical activity is the most important confirmed neurodegenerative disease risk factor,” he stresses.
Cognitive activity is just as important as physical activity, he adds, noting that brain is a very complex system that needs to be constantly exercised in order to function properly.
The “recipe” of such mental exercises, Illarioshkin says, are already known: studying foreign languages and reading fairly complex texts that force readers to ponder on them and comprehend them.
The symptoms of the brain’s aging will inevitably emerge so the academician argues the importance of regular health checkups for people over 40, which can help identify risk factors in a timely manner and start dealing with them as soon as possible.
Illarioshkin also insists on the importance of a good and relatively lengthy sleep. Apparently, when people are asleep, their brain’s separate lymphatic system responsible for flushing out proteins responsible for causing various pathologies is especially active.
“At least six or seven hours of sleep is mandatory. One cannot always feel themselves beat, every day, year after year, due to a lack of sleep,” he says.
Neurodegenerative Diseases’ Pathology and Treatment
Neurodegenerative diseases develop for years before becoming apparent, with pathological processes emerging in brain some 15-20 years before symptoms manifest.
“Problem is, by the time we first diagnose Alzheimer’s or Parkinson disease, 40 or 50 percent of neurons in the brain’s key area are already dead. First clinical manifestations of the disease are detected when the brain’s defensive mechanisms are nearly exhausted, which is why many medications have no effect,” Illarioshkin laments.
He thus advocates the importance of diagnosing neurodegenerative disorders as soon as possible, and the importance of taking note of symptoms that may actually be harbingers of these diseases.
These symptoms include slight memory loss, minor problems with spatial orientation, having trouble performing routine actions and comprehending new information.
“People often tell me ‘If I come to you and get diagnosed with Alzheimers, can you treat it?’ Until recently, I would have said ‘unlikely’: we had several medications that only helped stabilize things at the disease’s early stages. But things started to change: new medications that appeared in the world a few years ago help ‘flush out’ pathologic proteins from the brain,” Illarioshkin adds.
The academician does note that the existing treatments only help slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, but suggests that new and more effective medications are going to be created in the future.
“Fortunately, medications that affect not just the symptoms but the flow of neurodegeneration started to appear, which is important,” he says. “We are entering the age of molecular therapy related to neurodegeneration, not to mention the actively developed gene therapy methods, especially those meant for genetic diseases.”
Again, Illarioshkin stressed the importance of properly diagnosing the form of the “cognitive decline” in the patient in order to prescribe the necessary medication.
“For that, the methods of early diagnosis need to be actively implemented and promoted,” he says.