TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – As Alzheimer’s Awareness Month comes to an end, Florida State University researchers are continuing efforts to better understand the disease and shape the future of prevention and treatment.
Nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, and one in three seniors dies from Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia, according to the Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation.
FSU researchers are examining the psychological and social factors that increase a person’s risk for Alzheimer’s, as well as what helps people stay resilient throughout the course of the disease.
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Associate Professor Aaron Wilber says the long-term goal is to establish effective preventive care.
“We’ve been thinking of this disease as one disease, and we haven’t gotten very far in treating it that way,” Wilber said. “So we’re starting to back up a little bit and think of it as a set of diseases. One piece we’ve focused on is the idea that sleep may be less deep very early in Alzheimer’s, or even before it starts at all.”
Wilber says improving sleep quality could help the brain clear waste more effectively and support functions believed to be impacted by Alzheimer’s.
“If you boost sleep and improve it, you can facilitate the ability of your brain to clear out the garbage it normally removes during sleep and prevent that garbage from accumulating, which may be what happens in Alzheimer’s disease,” he said.
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