Dementia Warning Sign: Your Walking Speed Could Be A Key Indicator, Study Suggests
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We’re all familiar with the typical warning signs of dementia – forgetfulness, confusion and difficulty with everyday tasks. But did you know that something as simple as walking more slowly could be an early sign of the condition?
According to a new study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a decline in both walking speed and cognition are strong predictors of a dementia diagnosis later on in life.
The study, which involved more than 16,800 older people, found that those who walked more slowly were more likely to develop dementia over time.
It was said that the study, which is one of the largest in its field, was conducted in Australia and the US and focused on people over the age of 65.
The participants' walking speed was measured every two years, and they also underwent tests to assess their cognition, including memory and verbal fluency tests.
The findings showed that those whose gait declined by as little as 0.05 metres per second each year were more likely to also experience cognitive decline, and were at an increased risk for developing dementia.
While the study doesn’t prove that slow walking causes dementia, it does suggest that simple memory and walking-speed testing would enable doctors, clinicians and nurses to identify a person’s dementia risk and introduce preventive measures early on.
Your walking speed could determine if you’re likely to develop dementia over time, a new study suggests. Credit: Darrian Traynor.
Monash University’s National Centre for Healthy Ageing director Velandrai Srikanth said that target groups for future dementia treatments should include people with a decelerating gait and cognitive difficulties.
“They would be the ones to try to make sure that their blood pressure is well controlled, that they are physically active, that they have a good diet, that they connect socially ... all the good things that hold off the risk of dementia,” Professor Srikanth, who also authored the study, said.
“We don’t have many successful treatments at the moment, but if they do come up in the future, then we’ll know who to target those treatments to.”
The trailblazing study is also the first research to investigate the links between talking and memory testing — an assessment that is associated with a greater risk of dementia.
Now, researchers propose developing tests for assessing gait speed to help with dementia prevention.
The study also pointed out that a change in voice and speech patterns may be an early warning sign for dementia.
Prof Velandrai Srikanth discussing the experiment with a participant. Credit: Darrian Traynor.
Dementia Australia honorary medical adviser and neurologist Amy Brodtmann said that the new study proves that the condition impacts several parts of the brain.
She explained: “The pathways for our reflexes are really different from the pathways for our memory.”
“This speaks to the fact that multiple areas of the brain are affected by dementia.”
“For those with dementia, we know memory is a problem, but what if they can’t get to the toilet in time? They can’t get themselves down the street? It speaks to things that are [about] independence.”
“We often see some people who are quite frail and elderly who are slow walkers for other reasons like arthritis, and we say, ‘Oh, they’re sharp as a tack’, but this is the first time that we’re sort of saying, ‘Well, is that really the case?’”
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