News
What's happening in Alzheimer's care, research funding, and treatment — summarized simply, each item linked to the original reporting.
Free to read, “May need a subscription” and “Archived copy”: what they mean
Whether an article is free to read is a guess, not a test of your access. Each item is one of three:
- No label: free to read (304 of 349). The publisher’s page marks it free, or the outlet publishes free to read: Medical Xpress, ScienceDaily, NIH (incl. NIA and PMC), Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's News Today, NPR, Alzheimer's Disease International, or a .gov site.
- May need a subscription (11 of 349). The publisher’s own page marks the article as not free to read, or — when the page says nothing — the outlet sells subscriptions: The New York Times, STAT, Scientific American, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Economist, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Wired, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Times, The Telegraph, New Scientist, Endpoints News, Science. Each badge says which.
- “Free to read? Not known” (34 of 349). The outlet is on neither list and its page said nothing. We do not call these paywalled.
Archived copy links go to a copy the Internet Archive (web.archive.org) saved, dated the day it was saved. We show one only where the Internet Archive reported a working saved copy when we checked; an archived copy of a subscription article sometimes shows only its opening. 265 of 349 items have one.
Life-course clinical obesity linked to signs of brain health changes in midlife
New research from the Bogalusa Heart Study has found that greater exposure to clinical obesity during young adulthood is associated with a greater burden of white matter changes in the brain by midlife…
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (8 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveBlood marker may flag Alzheimer's-related changes in Down syndrome decades before symptoms appear
Decades before the first symptoms of Alzheimer's disease appear, some changes associated with the disease may begin to leave a trace in the blood. …
Why it matters: A blood marker may detect Alzheimer's-related changes in individuals with Down syndrome decades before symptoms appear.
Improving early detection of cognitive impairment in primary care
Early detection of cognitive impairment can connect patients with evaluation and treatment sooner, but many screening methods are difficult to incorporate into routine primary care. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (7 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveHealth records link ADHD to more than fourfold higher risk of later cognitive impairment
A new study led by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers finds that adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) face a significantly higher risk of developing dementia or mild cognitive impairment later in life. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (9 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveStarting Alzheimer's treatment earlier increases benefits to patients and society
New treatments that can slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease could provide significant lifetime benefits to patients and society, with even greater benefits when initiated earlier, according to new research from the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (7 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveClinical trial tests AI-assisted medication device for older adults with memory loss
Marianne Blake has lived in the same home for nearly half a century. She plays bridge regularly, drives to her hair appointments and, at 88 years old, enjoys her independence.
Read at Medical Xpress →Survey participants less likely to recommend life-sustaining care for patients with dementia, despite documented wishes
People were about 19 percentage points less likely to recommend life-sustaining treatment for a seriously ill patient with dementia than for a patient without dementia, even when an advance directive requested life-sustaining care…
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (7 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveObesity's link to lower risk of death in dementia points to likely importance of nutrition
People who are overweight or obese when they are diagnosed with dementia are likely to live longer than those in a normal weight range, according to a new study by Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and NYU School of Global Public Health. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (7 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveWhy hearing loss deserves earlier attention in dementia prevention
Dr. Brent Tipping, a geriatrician at Wits Donald Gordon Medical Center (WDGMC), says that hearing loss more than doubles the odds of dementia, with visual impairment (both near and far) also elevating the risk.
Why old dogs might be able to teach Alzheimer's researchers new tricks
Most people know someone with Alzheimer's disease. When I was growing up, my grandmother struggled with dementia, and I saw firsthand how difficult that was for our family.
Managing misfolded proteins to prevent Parkinson's disease
The protein alpha-synuclein is abundant in healthy brains and plays an important role in enabling communication between nerve cells. However, under certain conditions, misfolded alpha-synuclein proteins can accumulate into toxic clumps inside neurons. …
Read at Medical Xpress →Slow down, reminisce if it feels right: Practical tips for talking to people with dementia
No one likes to feel left out of the conversation—including people living with dementia. Sometimes, all it takes is a little extra thought to make sure everyone feels included.
- Music-based therapeutic interventions for people with dementia (Cochrane review update)
- Cognition and anatomy in three variants of primary progressive aphasia
- The inter-relationship between delirium and dementia: the importance of delirium prevention
- An update on semantic dementia: genetics, imaging, and pathology
Brain responses to heartbeat are altered in patients with iRBD
Isolated REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD), a condition characterized by strong physical reactions to vivid, often violent dreams, is one of the earliest warning signs of brain changes seen in Parkinson's disease or dementia with Lewy bodies…
Why it matters: Isolated REM sleep behavior disorder serves as one of the earliest warning signs of brain changes seen in Parkinson's disease or dementia with Lewy bodies.
Read at Medical Xpress →Brain tissue removed during surgery reveals potential way to curb inflammation linked to Alzheimer's
Inflammatory conditions in the brain, including traumatic brain injury and degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, could be targeted with an existing drug thanks to new research that shows it can work in brain cells.
Why it matters: New research in brain cells reveals an existing drug could potentially curb inflammatory conditions linked to Alzheimer's and traumatic brain injury.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (8 Oct 2026), Internet ArchivePolyubiquitin may stabilize tau filament structures in neurodegenerative diseases
In neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, progressive neuronal damage is associated with the accumulation of abnormal tau filaments in the brain. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (6 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveIrrelevant visual details interfere with decisions under uncertainty, brain research shows
Cognitive flexibility, the ability to adjust one's way of thinking or behavior as a situation changes, is known to gradually decline with age or due to some conditions, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and substance use disorders. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (5 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveHuman tau seeds trigger disease-specific shapes in mouse brains, new study finds
Tau is a protein that occurs naturally in the brain. It is essential for proper neuron development and for how neurons communicate with each other. The same protein, however, when misshapen or misfolded, can act as a driver of neurodegenerative diseases. …
Why it matters: Misshapen tau protein can act as a driver of neurodegenerative diseases despite its natural role in neuron development and communication.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (5 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveReading, socializing and doing puzzles can help preserve cognitive health, large study shows
Puzzles, brain-training games and hobbies have long been said to stave off cognitive decline. But while some research has shown that intensive brain-training programs done over several weeks can reduce cognitive impairment, such interventions aren't very practical in daily life.
Why it matters: A large study shows that everyday activities like reading, socializing, and doing puzzles can help preserve cognitive health.
Alzheimer's disease and aging reshape brain communication in different ways
Both normal aging and Alzheimer's change how different brain regions communicate with each other. But a new study from Lund University reveals that these alterations follow distinct patterns, with disease-related shifts distinguishable from those linked to normal aging. …
Why it matters: A new study from Lund University reveals that brain communication shifts in Alzheimer's disease follow distinct patterns from normal aging.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (3 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveHearing aids show promise for cognitive recovery, but dementia prevention remains unproven
People who live long enough have a high chance of losing some of their hearing as they grow older. By age 60, about one in three adults has presbycusis, an age-related decline in hearing caused by changes inside the ear…
Why it matters: Hearing aids show potential for helping cognitive recovery, though their ability to prevent dementia is still unproven.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (2 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveLower vertebral bone mineral density linked to cognitive decline
Lower vertebral bone mineral density (vBMD) is associated with changes in brain structure and cognition among older adults, according to a study published online in Radiology.
Why it matters: Lower vertebral bone mineral density is associated with changes in brain structure and cognition among older adults, according to a study published in Radiology.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (2 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveYour voice may reveal how fast and how well you're aging
A large study shows that machine-learning clocks based on speech can estimate chronological age and may also offer a window into brain aging, biological aging, cognitive health, cumulative burden and dementia.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (2 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveResearch offers new hope for those at higher risk of Alzheimer's disease
A new study from the University of Missouri offers hope for those who are at significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life.
Read at Medical Xpress →Gene editing approach opens potential new route to Alzheimer's treatment
Dr. Kevin Kemp and his research team at the University of Bristol have converted the high-risk Alzheimer's gene APOE4 into the lower-risk APOE3 gene.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (29 Sep 2026), Internet ArchiveGenetic analysis reveals potential benefit of aspirin for reducing dementia risk
Low-dose aspirin was associated with a 70% lower risk of dementia among older people with a particular genetic profile, a new Monash University analysis has found, raising the possibility of a more personalized approach to dementia prevention.
Read at Medical Xpress →Dietary patterns linked to favorable blood biomarkers relevant to aging
Researchers have long known that diet plays an important role in health later in life, but the biological mechanisms underlying these associations are not yet fully understood. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (29 Sep 2026), Internet ArchiveThe brain still responds to favorite music in dementia
What happens in the brain of someone with dementia when they hear music that means something to them? Researchers from Alzheimer Center Amsterdam and the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience mapped how the brain responds to personally meaningful music. …
Why it matters: Researchers mapped how the brain of someone with dementia responds when hearing personally meaningful music.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (28 Sep 2026), Internet ArchiveMenopause leaves a fingerprint that may predict dementia risk
As women go through menopause, they often sense that it's not just their bodies changing, but also their minds. They report hot flashes, anxiety, brain fog and trouble sleeping—all symptoms that can be traced back to the brain.
Why it matters: As women undergo menopause, they report symptoms such as brain fog, anxiety, and trouble sleeping, which can all be traced back to changes in the brain.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (2 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveSolving Alzheimer's with math? Researcher explores the possibilities
What can mathematics reveal about Alzheimer's disease? Mississippi State University associate professor Shantia Yarahmadian is using mathematical modeling to examine how common metals may influence a protein that forms plaque associated with Alzheimer's disease…
Why it matters: Mississippi State University researcher Shantia Yarahmadian is using mathematical modeling to examine how common metals may influence a protein linked to Alzheimer's disease plaque.
Read at Medical Xpress →How the MIND diet protects aging brains
A well-known brain-healthy diet may help ward off cognitive decline and dementia by protecting arteries, a new study suggests.
Why it matters: A well-known brain-healthy diet may help ward off cognitive decline and dementia by protecting arteries, a new study suggests.
Read at Medical Xpress →Follow new items in a feed reader: Atom feed.