With Frontotemporal Dementia Parts Of The Brain Associated With Personality Are Often Affected First
Loved ones will notice changes to a person's behavior rather than notice slips in memory like one would see in Alzheimer's. Because of this, a frontotemporal dementia can be extremely hard on the families who don't understand why their loved one is so different. In other public health news: a new HIV strain, insomnia, "femicide," the practice of dopamine starvation, and more.
The New York Times:
The Loneliness Of Frontotemporal Dementia
At 66, Bob Karger was losing language. It was not the tip-of-the-tongue feeling that melts when you recall a sought-after word. He had lost the connection between sounds and meaning — the way ba-na-na recalls a soft, yellow fruit or ea-gle calls to mind a large bird of prey. In a recent conversation, he had thought acorns grew on pine trees. Mr. Karger did not know how to use items around the house, either. When he picked up a can opener, he would not realize it could remove the top from a tin. If he held a hammer, he might grasp it by the head, turning it around in his palm, not knowing he could swing it into a nail. His world was filled with incomprehensible items. (Peskin, 11/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
A New Strain Of HIV Is Recorded Under Group That Caused Pandemic
Scientists using advanced DNA sequencing technology have documented a previously unidentified strain of HIV under the group that is responsible for the vast majority of human infections. The previous strain in that group was documented in 2000. The latest strain was found in just three people, but the findings by Abbott Laboratories ABT 0.95% —a maker of HIV tests—are expected to strike up a broader conversation about how to classify new viral strains that could surface. The company described its findings on Wednesday in an academic journal. (Rana, 11/6)
CNN:
Insomnia In Adults Linked To Heart Attack And Stroke
Do you suffer from insomnia? You may be more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke or develop heart disease, according to a new study published Wednesday. "This is probably one of the larger studies that have been published so far on the connection between insomnia and cardiovascular risk," said Harvard professor and neurologist Dr. Natalia Rost, chief of the stroke division at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. (LaMotte, 11/6)
MPR:
After 30 Years, Women Who Compile 'Femicide' Report Still Working To Stop Domestic Violence
Known for years as the annual Femicide Report, it started in 1989 as a way to fill in a gap in reporting gender-bias violence against women and girls. There was no other state or national group collecting this kind of data at the time, and to this day no state agency collects comparable data. (Bierschback, 11/7)
The New York Times:
How To Feel Nothing Now, In Order To Feel More Later
Everything was going really well for the men of Tennessee Street. Women wanted to talk to them, investors wanted to invest, their new site got traffic, phones were buzzing, their Magic: The Gathering cards were appreciating. This all was exactly the problem. They tried to tamp the pleasure. They would not eat for days (intermittent fasting). They would eschew screens (digital detox). It was not enough. Life was still so good and pleasurable. (Bowles, 11/7)
MPR:
Indigenous Baby Food Aims To Improve Health Of Babies And The Environment
Native Americans are more likely than any other group to have diabetes, and Sharon Day wants to start addressing the problem early — really early. Day is executive director of the Indigenous Peoples Task Force in Minneapolis, which is preparing to release a baby food next year under the brand name Indigi-Baby. It will be made from traditional Native American ingredients like wild rice, Gete-Okosomin squash and rutabaga. (Nesterak, 11/6)
Kaiser Health News:
When Caring For A Sick Spouse Shakes A Marriage To The Core
For a dozen years, Larry Bocchiere, 68, didn’t find it especially difficult to care for his wife, Deborah, who struggled with breathing problems. But as her illness took a downward turn, he became overwhelmed by stress. “I was constantly on guard for any change in her breathing. If she moved during the night, I’d jump up and see if something was wrong,” he said recently in a phone conversation. “It’s the kind of alertness to threat that a combat soldier feels. I don’t think I got a good night’s sleep for five years. I gained 150 pounds.” (Graham, 11/7)
WBUR:
Scrubbing Your House Of Bacteria Could Clear The Way For Fungus
Many antibacterial cleaning solutions and sanitizers specifically target bacteria, which could clear space for other kinds of microbes to flourish. Fungi also have thick cell walls, which may make them harder to kill. (Huang, 11/6)
