Successful digiDEM Bavaria Dementia Screening in the Upper Palatinate

The first dementia screening day in Amberg, Upper Palatinate was met with enthusiastic response. Many citizens followed the joint invitation from digiDEM Bayern, the Digital Dementia Register Bavaria in Erlangen, and its Amberg cooperation partners Jan Kreusel and Birgit Hübner, to have their own memory performance checked free of charge with the help of a scientific short test. „The interest was present the whole…”

Webinar: Help from the App Store – Evidence of Apps for People with Dementia and their Caregivers

Germany has a lot of catching up to do when it comes to digitizing its healthcare system. At the same time, health apps are becoming increasingly popular. They can be easily downloaded from app stores and used regardless of location or time. According to one study, almost 80 percent of people aged 60 to 69 are „online.“ But what about the quality of the apps, especially…

digiDEM Bavaria Study: Quality of Most Dementia Apps is Insufficient

Memory training, brain fitness exercises, early dementia detection tests, or organizational aids for daily care: The range of apps for people with dementia (PwD) and their caregivers is diverse. A research team from FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg and the Bavarian Digital Dementia Register (digiDEM Bayern) has for the first time examined German-language apps for PwD and for caregivers for scientific evidence and …

digiDEM Bavaria Study: Quality of Most Dementia Apps is Insufficient

A research team from FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg and the Digital Dementia Registry Bavaria (digiDEM Bayern) has, for the first time, evaluated German-language apps for people with dementia and for caregivers based on scientific evidence and user quality, arriving at two sobering results. For most dementia apps available on the so-called "self-payer market," there is no scientific evidence of their...

Fighting the Taboo

Although the number of people with dementia worldwide is steadily increasing, dementia remains a major taboo in society. Affected individuals are hesitant to talk openly about their illness, which has a negative impact on their health, as well as their willingness to seek help and support. A team of Australian and...

Early detection of dementia with the help of „Deep Learning“

„Deep Learning“ is a special type of machine processing of information. When digital, individual voice recordings are analyzed in this way, for example, conclusions can be drawn and predictions made from the existing data. A study from 2021 comes to interesting results regarding early dementia detection. Increasingly in the early detection of diseases...

Effective Training in Technology

Digital technologies support people in many ways to manage their lives. However, people with dementia can also benefit from tablets and apps. As their cognitive abilities decline, they need support in learning how to use touchscreens and the like. Apps for cognitive training, appointment scheduling, games, leisure activities, or art: In the...

Reducing the risk of dementia, step by step

Featured

An active lifestyle with sufficient exercise not only keeps you physically fit but is also said to have a positive impact on mental performance. British researchers have discovered: Around 4,000 steps a day could help reduce the risk of dementia.

A group of researchers in England has investigated whether and to what extent daily step count acts as a protective factor against the development of dementia. They examined the link between the onset of dementia and the number of steps taken each day. The research findings suggest that there may be a link between daily step count or walking intensity and the onset of dementia. 

Eine Mindestanzahl von rund 3.800 Schritten pro Tag kann zu einer Verringerung des Demenzrisikos um 25 Prozent führen.

A 25 percent reduction in the risk of dementia

There is no minimum number of steps, the authors write. While about 9,800 steps per day appear to be optimal for reducing the risk of dementia, even a minimum of about 3,800 steps per day can lead to a 25 percent reduction in that risk. In addition, both targeted steps and the highest 30-minute step frequency can have a positive effect. At least around 4,000 steps a day could therefore contribute to a reduction in the prevalence of dementia in the general population. 

Based on their findings, the researchers recommend that the optimal daily step count and step intensity be included in the guidelines for dementia prevention.

Large-scale study

A total of 78,430 adults aged 40 to 79 participated in the British study between 2013 and 2015. The participants' daily step count was measured using an activity monitor suitable for study purposes – similar to a smartwatch. Participants wore this on their wrist 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

The researchers tracked different types of steps, such as „random steps“ (fewer than 40 steps per minute) and „purposeful steps“ (40 steps per minute or more). In addition, other personal and health-related data were collected. The researchers monitored the participants until October 2021 to see if they developed dementia following their participation in the study. During this period, 866 participants—just under one percent—developed dementia..

Here is the link to the study:

Association of Daily Step Count and Intensity With Incident Dementia in 78,430 Adults Living in the UK