Nina Veru
AP Bio, C-Odd
Current Event 18
3/8/18
“Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 20 Feb. 2018, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180220183954.htm.
According to a source published by sciencedaily.com, alcohol abuse has proven to be one of the biggest risk factors for dementia. One particular study looked at a group of 57,000 people who were diagnosed with early onset dementia (before age 65), and noticed that 57% of the cases were related to heavy drinking. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), chronic drinking is 60 grams per day for men and 40 grams per day for women. Alcoholism is typically treated with screening and therapy. Doctors suggest that patients suffering from alcoholism should seek treatment, which would reduce the risk of illness’ such as dementia. Along with dementia, alcoholism is associated with liver damage and cardiovascular disease.
According to Dr. Jurgen Rehm the study indicates, “that heavy drinking and alcohol use disorders are the most important risk factors in dementia, and especially important for those types of dementia which start before age 65.” Dr. Rehm suggests that alcoholism is one of the most prominent causes of non-hereditary dementia. Alcohol abuse can lead to dementia because the substance damages parts of the brain. Dr. Rehm claims, “Alcohol induced brain damage and dementia are preventable, and known effective preventive and policy measures can make a dent into premature dementia deaths.” By limiting the use of alcohol, one can prevent or reduce their chances of being diagnosed with early onset dementia. Dr. Rehm, who is the co-author of the CAMH institute study also notes that on average, alcohol use disorders shorten one’s lifespan by more than 20 years and that dementia is the leading cause of death in these people.
What I thought was most interesting was that although most dementia patients are women, ⅔ of the early onset patients were men. Alcohol abuse is also correlated with other risk factors for dementia onset. These include: tobacco smoking, high blood pressure, diabetes, lower education, depression, and hearing loss.
I believe that the information presented in this study is very important. Alcohol abuse and dementia are on the list for being the leading causes of death, so it is interesting to note the relationship between the two. At first I was interested to read this study because my grandma was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and the disease runs in my family. I definitely think it’s important to learn that heavy drinking is associated with the disease. Although I enjoyed the article, I wish it was a bit longer with more information on the study.
Jack Kochansky
ReplyDeleteAP Biology EF Even
Mr. Ippolito
8 March 2018
Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia
By The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Reviewed by Nina Veru
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. “Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 20 Feb. 2018, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180220183954.htm.
In her review of the article “Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia,” Nina did a great job in giving a brief summary that discussing some of the wide-reaching impacts of the disease. First of all, she did a very good job incorporating quotes from the article in her review, which helped to strengthen the credibility of her statements. Secondly, she includes many statistics in her review, which give us detailed information about the connection between alcoholism and dementia. This aids us in fully understanding the situation and demonstrates that Nina fully comprehends it, as well. Finally, Nina’s inclusion of a personal connection in her final paragraph shows what this study really means to her and that it is relevant, especially to her own family. The combination of each of these features meant that her review was well-done and interesting.
However, there were a few places in which Nina could have improved. For example, her review is four paragraphs long and does not quite seem to follow the rubric for a current event, which makes it a little more difficult to follow. Also, it would have been a little better if Nina had included a bit more detail in her summary paragraph. Although she does explain the link between alcoholism and dementia, she did not describe what dementia is, which would have been helpful. In general, though, Nina did a very good job with this current events review and chose a good topic to read about.
Reading current events reviews like this one helps me to fully grasp that even though science has made significant improvements and discoveries in the fields of medicine, there remains so much that we can discover. Even though we knew that alcoholism is very bad, we had not previously seen what effects it can have on the brain in terms of early-onset dementia. It goes to show that we need to be careful when we are dealing with substances that can hurt our bodies, because they often have multiple negative effects that are not immediately evident. Discoveries like this one are relevant not only to science, but also to our daily lives and habits in society.
Mairead Cain
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
A.P. Biology E/F
19 March 2018
“Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 20 Feb. 2018, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180220183954.htm.
Nina did a very nice job with her current event review on the article “Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia,” from the Science Daily online resource. I decided to review her report as the article title is rather intriguing. There are many good techniques she uses throughout her report. One example is when she gives the actual percentage of people who are likely to get dementia from alcohol abuse. Her focus on this factor of the original report is important as it provides background information to help the reader understand the topic at hand. Another aspect of Nina’s writing that was done rather well was when she included information concerning what it means to be a chronic drinker. This input of information further aids the reader in understanding how those who are chronic drinkers will have dementia later on in life. Lastly, I appreciated how Nina discussed the fact that doctors are encouraging patients with chronic alcohol abuse to seek help. This would greatly lower their chances of having dementia and help said patients life happier, healthier lives.
Nina’s report was extremely interesting and informative, however there are some details that she could tweak and add to make the current event report even that much better. I recommend that she gives her own opinion on the data and findings in the report. It would have been interesting to see her own opinion on the matter. Her input could have also made the transitions between paragraphs more smooth. She could have given more information concerning the study that this information was found under. Learning more about the scientists who discovered the link between dementia and alcoholism would have been very interesting.
Nina’s report on the article, “Largest Study of Its Kind Finds Alcohol Use Biggest Risk Factor for Dementia,” was very informative and I learned extensively about the link between dementia and severe alcoholism. Before reading the report, I had a limited understanding about how those with alcoholism are more likely to have dementia. Alcohol in excess can severely damage the brain and cause dementia and other neurological disorders. Countless people across the world are deeply affected by alcoholism, and it extremely important that these people seek help and recover from their addictions.