the times | Tuesday July 21 2020 2GM 23
News
To avoid Alzheimer’s disease, be edu-
cated as much as possible when young,
take part in “mentally stimulating ac-
tivities” such as reading, and try to
avoid head trauma and stress.
These are among ten suggestions
backed by “strong evidence” and nine
with weaker evidence, in a review of
how people might reduce their chances
of developing the dementia.
The researchers, led by Jin-Tai Yu, of
Fudan University in China, reviewed
243 observational studies and 152 ran-
domised controlled trials to find how
the risks could be reduced.
Their top ten suggestions included
avoiding diabetes, depression and high
blood pressure in midlife. Suggestions
that were less proven included getting
regular physical exercise, sufficient
good quality sleep, maintaining a
healthy body weight and good heart
health in later life, avoiding smoking
and including vitamin C in the diet.
Dementia affects about 850,000
people in the UK, two thirds of whom
have Alzheimer’s disease. It is a leading
Older people who retain the ability to
stop and smell the roses face a signifi-
cantly lower risk of dementia.
People in their seventies who could
identify scents such as roses, turpentine
and lemons and who kept good hearing
and vision had less than half the risk of
developing dementia of those whose
the senses, smell appeared to have the
strongest association with dementia.
Participants whose smell declined by
10 per cent had a 19 per cent higher risk
of the condition. A similar decline in
vision, hearing or the sense of touch
translated to an increased dementia
risk of between 1 per cent and 3 per cent.
Dr Willa Brenowitz, of the University
of California San Francisco, who led theRhys Blakely Science Correspondent
How to dodge Alzheimer’s — read,
avoid stress and middle-age spread
Kat Lay Health Correspondent cause of death, with no new drug treat-
ments for dementia in almost 20 years.
The number of people with dementia
in the UK is forecast to increase to one
million by 2025 and 1.59 million by
2040 if trends continue. Recent re-
search has suggested that the number
of cases may be reducing, however,
possibly due to lifestyle changes.
The study in Journal of Neurology,
Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, is based on
a review of 395 studies.
The researchers concluded that the
top ten risk factors were insufficient
education and cognitive activity, a high
body mass index in late life, high blood
levels of the amino acid homocysteine,
depression, stress, diabetes, head trau-
ma, high blood pressure in midlife and
orthostatic hypotension, a condition
where blood pressure falls significantly
when someone stands up quickly.
Nine further factors with weaker
evidence included obesity in midlife,
weight loss in late life, lack of regular
physical exercise, smoking, insufficient
good quality sleep, cerebrovascular
disease, frailty, atrial fibrillation and
insufficient vitamin C in the diet.
Rosa Sancho, head of research at
Alzheimer’s Research UK, said that the
findings on head trauma and homo-
cysteine were intriguing.
Dr Sancho said: “Identifying risk fac-
tors like this is an important starting
point for further research into ways to
limit their impact and help people live
for longer free from dementia.
“Alzheimer’s Research UK’s Demen-
tia Attitudes Monitor [shows] just a
third of people think it’s possible to re-
duce their dementia risk. The best way
to keep your brain healthy as you age is
to stay physically and mentally active,
eat a healthy balanced diet, not smoke,
drink only within the recommended
limits and keep weight, cholesterol and
blood pressure in check.”
Fiona Carragher, director of research
and influencing at Alzheimer’s Society,
said: “In recent years, research has sug-
gested that nearly a third of dementia
cases may be preventable and this re-
view builds on this idea, specifically in
relation to Alzheimer’s disease and how
certain risk factors, many of which are
associated with cardiovascular health,
may be within our control.”You can sniff out your risk of developing dementia
senses deteriorated badly. The study
tracked nearly 1,800 Americans for up
to ten years each. All were in their
seventies and free of any signs of
dementia at the start; over the course of
the study 328 developed dementia.
Among those whose senses declined,
27 per cent developed signs of demen-
tia. Among those whose senses stayed
sharp, the figure was 12 per cent. Of allstudy, said the olfactory bulb, a peanut-
sized part of the brain that is critical for
smell, is affected early in the disease.
Some researchers believe that the
sensory input a person receives could
increase dementia risk by limiting
opportunities for social engagement.
The results were published in
Alzheimer’s and Dementia: The Journal
of the Alzheimer’s Association.Crumbs of
comfort for
prisoners
Richard Ford Home CorrespondentIt's an aroma to remind anyone of
better times. Now, it has emerged that
the smell of toast wafting through
prison corridors and cells also reduces
violence between inmates.
The smell creates a “homely” feel
and, along with porridge packs and
unlimited bread, is winning praise from
inmates at Lincoln prison.
An official report said that self-harm
incidents at Lincoln, which holds about
560 prisoners, had fallen from 620 to
614 in the year to December and
violent incidents by 11 per cent, from
1,087 to 963.
Toasters and unlimited supplies of
bread now supplement meagre break-
fast packs containing cereal, milk, tea
and brown or white bread that are
handed out to inmates. “This enables
prisoners to have a hot breakfast and is
much appreciated, and the homely
smell of toast contributes to a relatively
relaxed ambiance on the wings,” the
jail’s Independent Monitoring Board
annual report said.
It added that the prison kitchen
provided food that was good and varied,
including meals that met the require-
ments of many faith denominations
and those with special health needs.
“Complaints to the board about the
food are rare, and outnumbered by
compliments,” the report said.
The jail operates a four-week rolling
menu with a variety of meals, and fruit
and vegetables are available daily.
Food budgets for jails in England and
Wales are allocated on the basis of £2.02
per prisoner per day. Many prisons now
have kettles and toasters in cells and on
the wings.The top ten tips
6 Adults aged under 65 should not
be too skinny.
6 Do mentally stimulating activities
such as reading and playing chess.
6 Avoid diabetes by adopting a
healthier lifestyle.
6 Protect your head from injuries.
6 Under-65s should avoid high blood
pressure with a healthier lifestyle.
6 People with a sudden fall in blood
pressure on standing should have
their cognition closely monitored.
6 Maintain good mental health;
monitor people with depression.
6 Relax your mind; avoid daily stress.
6 Receive as much education as
possible in early life.
6 Have a regular blood test for
homocysteine levels. Low levels
should be treated with vitamin B
and/or folic acid.A
police officer
was hit on the
head with a
bottle and
seriously
injured when thousands
of Leeds United fans
gathered to mark their
club’s return to the
Premier League after
16 years (Charlotte
Wace writes).
Celebrations took
place in the city’s
Millennium Square after
a 3-1 win over Derby
County on Sunday.
Leeds had already been
promoted as championsand on Friday and
Saturday fans had
gathered outside its
Elland Road ground.
West Yorkshire police
said that about 7,000
people turned out and
that a “small minority”
had thrown bottles at
police. The female
officer was taken to
hospital for treatment
and several other
officers had minor
injuries. Fifteen people
were hurt and nine were
arrested for public order
offences.
Oz Khan, an assistantchief constable, said:
“Violence towards
police officers will not
be tolerated and we
deployed an appropriate
police response to
ensure that the
festivities concluded
safely. It is important to
remind the public that
we must not lose sight ofthe fact that Covid-19 is
still with us and that
large gatherings are not
permitted.”
Video footage from
the celebrations showed
supporters failing to
maintain social
distancing as they
hugged, drank alcohol
and let off flares. Fanswere seen scrambling on
to the Leeds City
Museum, while several
others climbed up
lampposts.
The city centre was
left strewn with glass,
cans, plastic bags and
other litter and
yesterday morning a
clean-up was under way.About 20 staff from the
local authority and the
Leeds Business
Improvement District
worked to clean up the
debris, with help from a
number of football fans.
Andrea Radrizzani,
the Leeds chairman, had
urged supporters to stay
at home if the club wonthe championship title.
Yesterday he urged
football fans to “be more
cautious”, adding: “I
think what I’ve seen is
not responsible at all.”
Mr Radrizzani issued
his warning amid fears
that similar scenes could
occur at the last game of
the season against
Charlton tomorrow. He
said: “Everybody wishes
to get together and
celebrate and we would
love to open the stadium
soon. But if we’re not
following the rules and
we take this superficially
this might cause more
cases, more problems
and then we might have
to postpone what we
want, which is to be
back at Elland Road as
soon as possible.”
Mohammed Rafique,
a councillor, said: “It is
vital that people do not
seek to replicate what
we saw in Millennium
Square in the coming
days.”
There was similar
exuberance outside
Anfield after Liverpool
won the Premier League
last month.
Wolves win, pages 60-61Leeds counts cost
of promotion party
Fans ignore social
distancing as they pack
Leeds city centre to
celebrate promotion to
the Premier LeagueGEORGE WOOD/GETTY IMAGES; DANNY LAWSON/PA