• Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • CARE INFORMATION
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • HOPE ON THE HORIZON
  • BLOG
  • Log In
  • Register
  • 0Shopping Cart
Best Alzheimer's Products
  • SHOP
  • Activities
    • Games
    • Puzzles
    • Toys& Manipulatives
    • Entertainment
  • Alternative Therapy
    • Aromatherapy
    • Art Therapy
      • Creating Art
      • Enjoying Art
    • Doll Therapy
    • Flashing Light Therapy
    • Bright Light Therapy
    • Music Therapy
    • Reminiscence Therapy
    • Sensory Stimulation
  • Alzheimer’s Disease
    • The Stages of Alzheimer’s
      • Three Stages
      • Seven Stages
    • Alzheimer’s Symptoms
    • The Alzheimer’s Brain
    • Can We Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease?
    • Mild Cognitive Impairment
    • Alzheimer’s FAQ
  • For Caregivers
    • Caregiver Resources
    • Share Your Story
    • Food For Alzheimer’s
  • Blog
  • Gifts
  • Search
  • Menu Menu

Mild Cognitive Impairment

May or may not be a risk factor for dementia

Table of Contents

  • Mild Cognitive Impairment
    • What is MCI, and is it different than Alzheimer’s/dementia?
  • Two Types of Mild Cognitive Impairment
  • What causes Mild Cognitive Impairment?
  • Risk Factors for Mild Cognitive Impairment
  • Can We Treat or Prevent MCI?
  • Related Research
    • Related Research: Mild Cognitive Impairment
    • Leave a Reply
    • Leave a Reply Cancel reply

As we get older our memory and other cognitive functions get a little less acute; this is just a fact of aging. But age related memory loss is not dementia; nor are other minor changes in our intellectual processes. Dementia is a sever loss of one or more cognitive functions that impair one’s ability to complete everyday tasks. In between normal aging and dementia is a condition called Mild Cognitive Impairment.

It is estimated that between 3% and 19% of adults over the age of 65 are affected by Mild cognitive impairment.  Mild cognitive impairment is not dementia, as it does not impact a person’s ability to care for oneself. However, as many as half of people with the condition will likely develop some form of dementia within five years. On the other hand, some people with mild cognitive imparement (MCI) remain stable or even return to normal.

SHOP FOR BRAIN BUILDERS

Use it or loose it is an apt maxim for the brain as well as the body

Our advice has always been to get a thorough diagnosis if you suspect dementia. This goes for mild cognitive impairment as well. Many of the curable or reversible conditions that can mimic dementia can also create symptoms of MCI.  Included on this list of possible culprits:

  • depression
  • drug side effects and interactions
  • infection and neuro-inflammation
  • Also see Conditions that Mimic Alzheimer’s

What is MCI, and is it different than Alzheimer’s/dementia?

Mild Cognitive Impairment, or MCI, is a decrease in cognitive functioning that is not clinically significant. It may be considered a risk factor for dementia, just as high blood pressure is a risk factor, but it is not dementia.

MCI is often a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease, like a stage between normal aging and dementia, but it does not necessarily become Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. In fact, only 10% to 40% of the cases of MCI go on to become dementia. Furthermore, by some estimates, as many as 30-40% of people diagnosed with MCI get better, though more recent data has this rate a little lower.

Two Types of Mild Cognitive Impairment

  • Amnestic mild cognitive impairment affect memory to a lesser degree than does dementia. Individuals with this type of MCI are generally aware of forgetfulness, as are those close to them. On the other hand, cognitive functions including executive functioning remain relatively unaffected.
  • Nonamnestic mild cognitive impairment, by contrast, does affect other cognitive functions like language and attention, while leaving memory untouched, for the most part.Of the two, amnestic MCI is more common and is more likely to progress to dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. In fact, a review¹ in The New England Journal of Medicine estimates that, “more than 90% of those with progression to dementia had clinical signs of Alzheimer’s disease.” Those with the less common form, nonamnestic MCI, who progress to dementia are more likely to develop “dementias that are not related to Alzheimer’s disease, such as frontotemporal lobar degeneration or dementia with Lewy bodies.”

What causes Mild Cognitive Impairment?

Just as there are many causes for dementia, mild cognitive impairment  can result from many conditions. In fact, postmortem studies of often find the plaques and tangles of Alzheimer’s disease, the Lewy bodies that cause the dementia that bears that name, or the restrictions to blood flow associated with vascular dementia. It seems reasonable to assume that almost every cause of dementia can potentially cause MCI. I think more important is understanding and controlling risk factors.

Risk Factors for Mild Cognitive Impairment

Risk factors for MCI are much the same as risk factors for dementia. They include:

  • Advancing age – probably the most prominent factor
  • Having the gene APOE-e4, which is also linked to Alzheimer’s disease; the good news – having the APOE-e4 gene doesn’t
  • Diabetes & Hypertension (untreated)
  • High serum cholesterol
  • Obesity
  • Smoking
  • Depression
  • Lack of physical exercise

Can We Treat or Prevent MCI?

We don’t have a definitive answer for this, but there is a lot we can do to lower our risk for mild cognitive impairment, and even lessen it’s effect, maybe even reverse the condition. Again, these positive risk factors are much the same as positive risk factors for dementia including Alzheimer’s disease. (Positive risk factors decrease our risk for something, as opposed to negative risk factors, which increase our risk.)

Mild cognitive impairment - anti-inflammatory foods like turmeric, ginger, and many other spices, can help protect against MCI

Many spices, like turmeric and ginger, are anti-inflammatory and can offer protection against MCI.

Risk factors for MCI are much the same as risk factors for dementia. They include:

  • Don’t get older – Okay, that’s not going to happen, but we have two ages: our chronological age and our biological age. It is our biological age that is the real factor, and we can effect our biological age. We can, in fact, reverse it to a degree. How? Begin by reducing or eliminating your negative risk factors:
    • Quit smoking
    • Moderate or eliminate alcohol consumption
    • If you have diabetes or hypertension, be sure it is treated and managed
    • Treat high serum cholesterol
  • Conversely, do all you can to increase positive risk factors:
    • Maintain a healthy weight
    • Keep your brain and your body fit – exercise both
    • Eat healthy – no junk food, little processed food, limit red meat, etc. One of the best ways to  do this is to prepare as much of your food as you can. A Mediterranean diet is one of the best for brain health. Anti-inflammatory foods are recommended. More >>
    • Stay socially active

Since symptoms, causes, risk factors, and treatments for mild cognitive disorders are so similar to those for Alzheimer’s disease and many other dementias, I recommend your read also our article Can We Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease.

Related Research

Mild Cognitive Impairment

  1. Mild Cognitive Impairment(2001). Ronald C. Petersen, M.D., Ph.D.;The New England Journal of Medicine, 2011; 364:2227-34.
    Copyright © 2011 Massachusetts Medical Society
  2. Effect of long-term lifestyle intervention on mild cognitive impairment in hypertensive occupational population in China (2018 ). Li M, Liu L, Song S, Shi A, Ma Y, Zhang S, Wang Z, Zhu D, Tian G; Medicine (Baltimore), 2018 Aug;97(34):e11975. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000011975.

Related Research: Mild Cognitive Impairment

  1. This Journal feature begins with a case vignette highlighting a common clinical problem. Evidence supporting various strategies is then presented, followed by a review of formal guidelines, when they exist. The article ends with the author’s clinical recommendations.
  2. The authors studied a group in China experiencing cognitive dysfunction, presumable as  a result of hypertension. They found that lifestyle intervention, which included diet, smoke, drink, and exercise intervention, had a measurably positive effect on cognitive performance. Their conclusion: Long-term lifestyle intervention can be used as adjunctive therapy to improve the BP and cognitive function of hypertensive occupational population in China.

0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Alzheimer’s FAQ
  • Alzheimer’s Symptoms
  • Can We Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease?
  • The Alzheimer’s Brain
  • The Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease
    • Mild Cognitive Impairment
    • Seven Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease
    • Three Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease

signup for our Newsletter

Subscribe

* indicates required
Interest
Email Format
THE POWER OF ART THERAPY

THE BENEFITS OF MUSIC

Tools for Music Therapy
A trained music therapist will create a context in which all the benefits of music therapy are possible, but knowing a little about why music is such a potent tool can help you create a therapeutic environment that includes music.

THE MIRACLE OF DOLL THERAPY

Doll therapy for Alzheimer's disease and dementia Doll therapy has been called a self-administering therapy. If a person accepts a doll, she or even he will benefit from nurturing the "baby", and this can be true whether the person thinks that the doll is a real baby, or knows that it is only a doll.

AROMATHERAPY

Aromatherapy for Alzheimer's In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Ophelia says, “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance." Recent studies show that rosemary, more specifically the essential oil of rosemary, has the power to improve memory. Other essential oils including lavender, lemon balm, and bergamot are also getting attention for the benefit that they provide to people who have dementia.

Sensory Stimulation is Brain Stimulation

Tools for Sensory Stimulation
We gather sensory information about our world with our noses as well as through our eyes and our ears. We taste with special nerve endings on our tongues, and other nerves allow us to feel with almost every part of our bodies. But it is the brain that processes those sensations. Sensory stimulation is brain stimulation.

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

Facebook

Posts

  • Better Dementia Care Without DrugsJuly 1, 2020 - 7:36 AM
  • Games that Exercise MemoryApril 22, 2022 - 2:50 PM
  • Best Alzheimer’s Products In The MediaFebruary 18, 2021 - 8:53 AM
Best Alzheimer's Products
748 S. Warren Ave
Palatine, IL 60074

About Us
Contact Us
Privacy & Cookie Policy

My Account

  • Dashboard
  • Orders
  • Downloads
  • Addresses
  • Account details
  • Tax Exemption
  • Logout

Organizations & Affiliations


Purple Angel Ambassador



Dementia Friendly America

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

  • Thanks, Appreciate that “extra effort”. Don’t seem to run into that much anymore… and that is a shame. I’m really looking forward to receiving the “toys” for my wife. I pray they will work as good as one of her caregivers told me they would. Ken
© Copyright 2018 Golden Care Products
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Best Alzheimer’s Products | About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Legal
  • Press Info
  • Share Your Story
Scroll to top
[]