August 15, 2025 • 30 mins
WASH-FM's Jenni Chase spoke to Dean Brenner, Board Chair for the Alzheimer's Association's National Capital Area Chapter, and Kate Rooper, President/CEO of the organization. We went over many findings from their recent research conference and discussed their upcoming Walks To End Alzheimer that will be taking place all over the DMV.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi there, good morning. Thank you so much for listening
to this iHeartRadio station. Jenny Chase checking in once again
with my friends from the Alzheimer's Association. It's an honor
to have Dean Brenner with us. He's the chair of
the National Capital Area Board of Directors.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Hi Dean, Hi, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Jenny. Great to be with you.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
I am well, thank you. As usual, Lots to talk
about this morning, Dean. You guys just wrapped up your
international research conference known as AAIIC.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Want to hear all about that.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
I'll delve into all the research from the latest conference,
but I want to make sure everyone knows if you
need help, if you have a family member that you're
not sure what to do about, but you're concerned the
person could have Alzheimer's, or you have someone who's been
diagnosed and you have any question at all, you can
call our one eight hundred helpline, which is twenty four
(00:48):
to seven with real experts, and the number is eight
hundred two seven to thirty nine hundred. Again it's eight
hundred two seven two thirty nine hundred and our website
is alz dot org. So I just wanted to get
that right up front in case people just tuned in
and have some specific concern or question in mind. So
(01:12):
back to your question, Jenny. The research conference that we sponsored,
it was held a couple of weeks ago in Toronto. Actually,
we had eleven thousand researchers coming from all over the world,
the people, the top scientists in the world, working together, collaborating,
sharing information about what to do with this scourge of Alzheimer's.
(01:35):
You know, there are more than seven million people over
the age of sixty five in the United States who
have it, including there are other people below the age
of sixty five who have it. They're more than fourteen
million people trying to take care of the people who
have it. So it's obviously a giant, giant set of problems. Yeah,
and I know, Jenny, you're one of us. You have
(01:57):
it in your family. I lost my mom to Alzheimer's
or so.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I'm so sorry. Again.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
We need to do everything we can to accelerate these research,
to get to the research more quickly because so many
people are in need. Now that the study that we
call us.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Pointer, Yes, please fill us in on that.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
So you've probably heard and your listeners have probably heard
people say you know, get exercise, eat well, get a
good night's sleep. Those things are important for preventing heart disease,
they're important for lowing your blood blood pressure, preventing diabetes,
and some people over the years have said those things
(02:37):
are important to prevent Alzheimer's or at least to slow
down Alzheimer's. So there's a lot of anecdotal evidence about that,
and kind of intuitively all of us would think, yeah,
that's probably true. But we wanted at the Alzheimer's Association
to quantify in a scientific study could we prove that
(03:00):
those sorts of lifestyle improvements really work. There had been
a study in Finland. Finlan, of course, smaller country, a
lot of different things in their society that may or
may not be applicable here in the United States. So
we wanted to sponsor a broad scientific study that would
look into could we prove that these lifestyle improvements really
(03:24):
do work, really do slow down cognitive decline. So US
Pointer was a two year clinical trial run at locations
all over the United States. We at the Alzheimer's Association
spent fifty million dollars on this study, so very vigorous signs.
There were two groups in the study. Everyone who is
(03:46):
in the study was considered to be at risk of
Alzheimer's disease because most of them had a family member
either a mother a father who had Alzheimer's. Most of
them live very sedentary lifestyles. A large segment of them
had high blood pressure, some of them had diabetes, some
(04:09):
of them were and it was a diverse study. Sometimes
in the old days, these studies would just be done
with men. That's ridiculous. We know two thirds of the
people who have Alzheimer's aren't women. So it was diversus
to gender, it was diversus to racial characteristics, ethnic characteristics.
So it was truly scientifically rigorous. And there were two groups.
(04:32):
We divided the people into two groups. Group one were
people who had a structured program, so they went on
a diet, they had to do exercise that would be
closely monitored, They had to meet with a clinician once
a week to record exactly what they were doing, and
(04:57):
they were given certain cognitive ex exercizes, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles,
all that kind of stuff. The second group was kind
of left on their own. Hey, we're not going to
tell you what to do. We want you to do
in some manner, you know, eat a better diet, get
more sleep, get some exercise, and then report to us.
(05:21):
And the results were astonishing. So both groups of people
had improvement in their cognition, and specifically, the structured group
did substantially better than the people who were left on
their own. Okay, so this is the first time, Jenny,
(05:42):
that we can prove that these lifestyle improvements directly will
will slow down anyone's likelihood of getting Alzheimer's. A big,
big development.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
I was going to say, that is a huge advancement
that that makes me so excited.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
We now know these measures are scientifically proven to prevent
the onset of Alzheimer's. So in the old days, when
my mom got Alzheimer's, I mean, we'll never know why
my mom got Alzheimer's, but the doctor would just say,
you know, hey, really sorry, there's not much you could
(06:21):
have even done. I don't know why this happened. No,
now we know if you're especially the people who have
it in their family who are at risk of it,
people like you and me, Jenny, and there are millions
of us, there are things that we can specifically do
that are proven to prevent it. It isn't one hundred
(06:41):
percent full proof, of course, but there are things that
are going to make it less likely, that are going
to give us more time with our families.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
I mean, again, this is a landmark advancement. Right, I'm
so glad we're getting to talk about this this morning, right, And.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Of course they're going to has to be a lot
of follow up work because okay, so now we did
this try with about four thousand people at certain locations
all over the country, But how can we work in
communities across the country to implement these structured lifestyle improvements.
(07:16):
You know, it's going to have to be a joint federal, state, local,
community based set of programs to get the word out
before anything else. Hey, folks, you can go into a
program like this, it will improve your cognition. And then,
of course, how do we set up these programs from
(07:37):
coast to coast in every community. And the Alzheimer's Association
we've committed we're going to spend over the next couple
of years another forty million dollars to try to try
to implement this on a community level. Very very exciting
set of developments and research findings, and we also need
(07:59):
to do more research, and we'll be funding that on
the really digging in so we have blood tests for
all these people who are in the study, we have
brain scans for all the people in the study, and
they're going to be additional scientific findings that we can
make now that this comprehensive study was done.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
There is a specific area that I wanted to ask about,
lifestyle intervention. What are some of those findings and any
others you want to share.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
The genetics of Alzheimer's are very complicated. Just because my
mom had it, that doesn't mean I'm getting it. Just
because someone in your family had it, that does not
mean that you're going to get it. There's a specific
gene called apoe four, and if you have one of
those genes, that does make you more predisposed to get
(08:51):
it than if you didn't. Okay, but again not to
guarantee that you're going to get it, but if you
have two apoe four genes, there's a high likelihood that
you're going to get it. That is the strongest known
genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's, this apoe four. And so
when we talk about what we can do to prevent Alzheimer's.
(09:15):
The group of people who have apoe four, they're really
the they're really in the eye of the storm. Those
are the people that we really want to try to
see what can we do, because again, they're the most
likely people to get it. So interestingly, there was some
research that we unveiled at the conference that showed that
the most effective thing that people who have this gene
(09:40):
can do to slow down their chances of getting it,
of getting Alzheimer's is to walk. Yeah, walking is such
an important thing, it's such an important healthy habit. So certainly,
you know, diet and cognitive interaction, all those other things
(10:02):
are very important, but we found that the single most
important thing that people can do is wak. Try to
get five thousand, seven, ten thousand steps a day.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Yeah, you hear that a lot.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
And again, just to reiterate, you don't need anything to walk,
no equipment. If it's raining, you just wear some gear.
It costs nothing. It's so simple and.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
Right exactly, yeah, exactly. And then the second study that
we had has to do with healthy diet. And I
think this is something that maybe when I say, you're
going to say, oh, this just makes so much sense,
but it's never been proven or studied before. And that
(10:47):
is that we actually know that people who are on SNAP,
people who are on food stamps had slower cognitive decline
over ten years than people who were so food assistance programs, which,
of course here in the Washington d C. The DMV area,
(11:09):
there's food insecurity is such a gigantic problem. And of
course I'm very aware of the fact that I'm telling
you about this study the findings at the same time
that Congress has passed the law which is going to
make it harder for people to get food stamps, and
it's going to result in millions of people getting kicked
off food stamps. And maybe if people in Congress get
(11:33):
the message of this study, maybe they'll realize that was
a very very bad idea and they should try to
revoke that part of the big law that they cast.
But we know that a healthy diet can help reduce
the risk of cognitive decline. So you know, for people
who are eligible for food stamps, the people who were
on food stamps had slower cognitive decline than the people
(11:58):
who are eligible. But we're kicked off or didn't sign up,
or for whatever reason, weren't on them.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
If someone's not familiar with SNAP and food stamps. Are
there certain foods that are prohibited, like maybe some of
the stuff that's ultra processed or high fat. Is that
why those on it are healthier?
Speaker 3 (12:15):
Yeah? I don't think it's a matter so much as
what's prohibited, but I think that a higher proportion of
the food that people who are on food stamps eat
is healthier than the people who are at the same
income level but aren't on food stamps.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
Okay, so we're talking healthier diet, vegetables and lean meats, protein,
all that stuff fruit.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
Fruit exactly, blueberries, strawberries, apples, pears, bananas, in addition to
green vegetables, right, and trying to reduce the amount of meat.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
Okay, so we've covered exercise, we've covered nutrition. There are
some environmental factors such as pollution. At your conference, what
did you find?
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Yeah, and this part is of course disturbing, especially as
environmental regulations in some cases are being rolled back. And
again I hope this is another area that the folks
in Congress and the administration would rethink. But we look
specifically at lead pollution and people who grew up in
(13:24):
areas where there was higher lead levels. We're twenty percent
more likely to report memory problems when they got older,
which is amazing. And again, so much of Alzheimer's is
a scientific mystery. We don't know why these people necessarily
(13:46):
are more likely to get Alzheimer's just because they were
subject to exposure to lead when they were kids at
a higher level. But we do know that the facts
are the facts, and it turns out out that they're
much more likely to suffer from Alzheimer's if they were
exposed to levels higher levels of lead when they grew up.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
So like, take me for example, I was born in
nineteen sixty nine, so I guess that puts me in
the class of you know, and I grew up. I
grew up in a big city, a big metropolitan city.
When I hear what you're saying, should I just be like, oh, wow, hang.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
On, it's another little red light that should big red
light that should be going off for people.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Jenny's so right, it's brand new information being brand new.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
I don't think we've ever talked about that.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
The target group are people who were exposed to high
levels of lead between nineteen sixty and nineteen seventy four
and of course, you know, how could you have been
exposed to lead? Well, of course at that time, there
was no such thing really as unleaded gasoline. All gasoline
(14:55):
had lead in it, but pipes lead pain, you know,
factories that used lead. You know, the lead was very
prevalent in the sixties and seventies. So that again, it's
not a sure thing. It doesn't mean oh my god,
you're definitely one hundred percent going to get Alzheimer's, but
(15:16):
it is a big warning sign that if you're in
that group of people, you know, you should go to
your doctor. You should get a cognitive exam every year,
you should do the lifestyle things that we've been talking about.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Well, so, Dianas I'm checking the boxes, we've got diet, exercise,
exposure to lead.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
I'm really getting a lot of boxes filled in here.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
So sorry about that. No, I like that for you.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Yeah, I know, I mean it stinks for me. But
this is stuff that maybe a lot of people do
not realize. All these different things.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
I mean, one alone is bad, but then if you
combine all of this together, it's like, okay, man, this
is something that I really need to investigate.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
Especially at a time when it's early enough for you
to do something about it.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
I mean, it's one thing if I'm telling you this
information and you're already over sixty five and you know, yeah,
maybe you know there's not that much you can do.
But for especially for people who are middle aged and younger,
we aren't living in an era anymore where there's nothing
you can do. You can make these lifestyle improvements that
(16:22):
I'm talking about. Yeah, and they are proven to actually
have good results.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
That is good to know.
Speaker 1 (16:28):
Okay, So let's segue now into treatments and medications because
there have been some really impressive advancements. What was in
your study that really stood out to you, guys?
Speaker 3 (16:37):
So there are two. The first one, Jenny is we
looked at people who are taking drugs to treat blood pressure, cholesterol,
and diabetes. And we know high cholesterol, high blood pressure,
and diabetes, those are all risk factors for Alzheimer's. And
what about the people who are diagnosed with those facts,
(17:00):
but they're on drugs. Maybe they're in their thirties, forties, fifties,
and they're on drugs. And it turns out if your
take for the group of people who are taking those drugs,
you are more you are more likely to slow cognitive decline.
So if you're diagnosed with high cholesterol and the doctor says,
(17:21):
you know, I really think you should take a stat
and you're diagnosed with diabetes, take the drugs that the
doctors are prestricting. It will result in a reduced chance
that you're going to get Alzheimer's, or if that you
do get Alzheimer's, it's going to give you more time
before it gets back.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
This is all just so enlightening.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
I mean, every time we talk it seems like advances
are being made, and I know there's still a long
way to go, but there is a sense of hope
that y'all are really making some headway.
Speaker 3 (17:51):
Right then, the last one that I wanted to talk about, Jenny,
is so there now are two drugs that people yes
can take yes and have what we would call mild
cognitive impairment sort of pre Alzheimer's the beginning or if
Alzheimer's is in an early stage. So we know what's
going on inside the brain of someone who has Alzheimer's
(18:14):
in an early stage is they get the build up
of this plaque. It's called amyloid, a protein that builds
up and so they're now two drugs. One is called
kim Be, the others called kissun La, and these two
drugs will take the plaque out. They're antibodies and they
generate an immune reaction in your brain, and over time
(18:35):
they've been proven to take out the plaque. Now, the
initial studies for these drugs were done over eighteen months.
That's the length of time that the FDA uses to
assess whether a drug is safe and whether it will
work or not. And both of these drugs passed and
they've been approved now for a while. But after that
eighteen months is up, often the drug manufacturer will keep
(19:00):
the study going. It's called an open label extension. And
in fact, in the eighteen month study, there's a group
of people who are in the placebo group. They're not
given the drug, but they don't know it. And in
this open label extension, in addition to letting people continue
to take the drug, the company will say to the
people who are in the placebo group, Hey, would you
(19:21):
like to go on the drug now? And invariably the
people will say yes. So both of the manufacturers of
these two drugs, like Kimbi and Kissunla, they release studies
from a longer term open label extension. So what happens
to people who stay in these drugs for three or
four years? Do they continue to do better, do they
(19:44):
continue to have improved cognition, or do they kind of
hit a wall? And it's very encouraging in both cases
for both drugs. It turns out that taking them beyond
the eighteen months continues to give people a benefit, continues
to slow down to cognitive decline. So now this is
(20:05):
again a game changer. When the drugs first came out,
there was a lot of skepticism. There were some doctors
who said, yeah, I don't really think it's enough of
a benefit. I'm not sure about this. Well, now it's
been truly proven between the initial study and this longer
term study. These two drugs are not cures, but they
(20:27):
do work as advertised. They do slow down Alzheimer's for
people who are in an early stage. So what that
means is if you see something you think is a
little bit off and a loved one, if you talk
to mother, father, aunt, uncle, neighbor, friend, and you just
see something it doesn't seem like normal aging. It isn't
(20:48):
just I forgot he for he or she forgot where
his keys or wild are. It is something beyond that.
Go get that person to a doctor. Get into the
doctor's office so that you can get an early enough diagnosis,
so that if the person does have early Alzheimer's, they
will they will qualify for one of these trucks.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Okays.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
I just you know, I have such a visceral reaction
to hearing you talk about this because we know, for
you and me both with with our family history, it
just I just I pray, I pray, pray, pray that
this is all going to at some point, it's all,
it's all going to combine and have the effect that
we are hoping for. So right, Sorry for getting on
my little emotional thing there.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
But Jenny, as you know that for both of us,
when the doctor said, hey, I'm really sorry your loved
one has Alzheimer's and there just isn't anything we can do.
I don't know about you, Jenny, but I remember where
I was at that exact moment. I remember that moment
is kind of etched into my memory. Nothing you can do,
(21:56):
are you kidding me? And you know, a good doctor,
a compassionate person, and he was just telling me the truth.
There wasn't anything. And now that's not the case anymore.
And you know, we have all kinds of high falutint studies,
and you know, I'm involved in all kinds of things
with the Alzheimer's Association. But the fact that that's not
(22:20):
true anymore, and that there is a medicine that the
doctor can give to people if the people qualify, if
you get the person in there early enough, and that's very,
very hard. I don't minimize that at all. It's hard
to speak up within a family. But that is such
a giant change that there are things that we can
do that it's not like, gee, you know, it's just
(22:43):
sort of a lost cause. No, this is a disease
now that's medical, that's treated medically. It's treated medically, just
like other diseases. And we just need people to get
the information. Which is why I'm so grateful to you
for having me onto.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
It is so my pleasure, Dean. If folks want more information,
what should they do? Where should they go?
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Okay, two things, So go to alz dot org on
the internet or call our one eight hundred number eight
hundred two seven to thirty nine hundred. But the biggest,
single thing that we do in the DMV in our
community is we have the Walk to End All timer
So in DC on the National Mall the morning of
(23:28):
September twenty seventh, we will have our Walk to End
Alzheimer's and hopefully we want to have you know, at
least a couple thousand people there. Our goal is to
try to raise a million dollars. Yes, that million dollars
is going to come from people who raise sixty five dollars,
people who raise one hundred and twenty dollars, and you know,
(23:51):
we need everyone. You can go to ALC dot org
or you can even google walk to End Alzheimer's. Come
to our walk on September twenty twenty seven. It's an
uplifting event. You will connect with other people who either
have gone through what you're going through or who we're
going through it now themselves too. You'll find a very
(24:13):
welcoming community. We're here to support you.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
Wonder we need.
Speaker 3 (24:17):
As many people as possible coming to that walk on
the National Mall.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
We certainly do. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
Dean Brenner is chair of the board of Directors of
the National Capital Area Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Now
we get to speak with Kate Ruper, who is president
and CEO of that chapter. Hi, Kate, good morning to you.
Very anxious to hear more about all of your walks
coming out.
Speaker 4 (24:39):
Thank you, Jenny, and thank you for joining us at
last year's Walk to an Alzheimer's event in Northern Virginia.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Pleasure.
Speaker 4 (24:45):
Our Walk to In Alzheimer's event is really the world's
largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer's care,
support and research. We have six walks right here in
our DMB community, Okay, and the fund that we raise
to the walk helped up on groundbreaking research and provide
free programs and services to people in our community that
are impacted by Alzheimer's and other dimensions. Yes, yes, yet,
(25:07):
and it's often really sort of what we call the
front door to the Alzheimer's Association, where it's the first
opportunity that people get to engage with other people in
the community that may be living with the disease or
serving as a caregiver, and it's just a wonderful way
for them to connect and more importantly, so they know
that they're not alone in this journey with Alzheimer's and
all other dimensions.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
What makes this particular event, the Walk to End Alzheimer's
so special for everybody who participates.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Well, at the walk, we get to celebrate the participants,
the donors to really help us advance that critical research
and the discovery of new treatment. And again we talk
a lot about help and hope for those in our community.
And one of the most I think inspiring parts of
our walk is the Promise Garden ceremony, and it's really
where each participant gets to hold a flower that signifies
(25:58):
their personal connection to the disease ease and really all
the colors together represent the diverse reasons that people come
together at the Walk to End Alzheimer's event, and there's really,
as you know, no currently any survivors, so this ceremony
really signifies, you know, our hope for the future. We
have one person who holds a single white flower that
really symbolizes our hope for Alzheimer's, for survivor in the future.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
I have a purple flower for my dad from last
year's walk. It is in my garden. I see it
every single day. It's just always such a special reminder
of him and what he went through and all the
great things that you guys do. Let's talk about the
funds that are raised through the walk. Where do those
all go?
Speaker 4 (26:43):
The walk is such a critical event to help us
provide funding for support services, which include our twenty four
to seven helpline and more than two hundred languages. We
have local support groups. We also have free educational programs
and again we are looking at advances and research for
better treatments and care. So every dollar helps us improve
(27:05):
the quality of life for those living with Alzheimer's and
their caregivers.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
Kate, if we can transition here, I want to talk
about your new app. I am just hearing about this
for the first time. What is this new app for
folks with Alzheimer's and other dementias?
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Tell us all about it.
Speaker 4 (27:20):
We are so excited. We just launched our new app.
It's called My All Journeys, so My ALV Journey, which
is a free mobile app that really offers personalized support
for those who are newly diagnosed in their care partners.
And the app has a variety of support in resources
with it. It offers information and activities that apply to
(27:43):
all types of dementia, so not only Alzheimer's, but you
can use the app to explore personalized resources step by step,
help what local support is in your area, other tools
and activities, and really, you know, it shares information based
on real life experience rances and we're so excited for
this resource set. Really help people have access, you know,
(28:05):
really what we say at their fingertips, right, you know,
support and resources they need to lead their daily lives.
It's on the Apple App Store or on Google Play Store.
Speaker 1 (28:14):
Okay, Kate, can you share the different ways that the
DMV community can get involved with all the great stuff
you're doing there at the Alzheimer's Association.
Speaker 4 (28:23):
That is a great question, Jenny. You know, first of all,
you can learn about Alzheimer's. You know, you can join
us at one of our upcoming free education programs, or
invite the Alzheimer's Association to come to your business organization
or staith based community. You can volunteer. You know, we
are a volunteer powered organization. You can become an advocate
and help plan event. You can call our one eight
(28:45):
hundred number which is one eight hundred two seven to
two thirty nine hundred, or visit a website at ALV
dot org, backslash, NCAA to learn more. And again you
can always get involved with our walk to and Alzheimer's
event as well.
Speaker 2 (29:00):
Kate, how do folks get signed out for that?
Speaker 4 (29:02):
That is a great question. Well, they can sign up
at alz dot org, backslash NCA Walks that's with our
National Capital Area chapter, and you can select one of
the six walks that we have in our community. You
can either register as an individual or you can start
a team. Our participation is free, but we always encourage
people to fundraise and really, you know, there's different ways
(29:25):
to become engaged with a walk. You can become a volunteer,
but we just know this is such an important part
of our community with new treatments emerging, you know, in
the fight tot Alzheimer's and other dementia, really the time
for hope and that's what our walks in Alzheimer's Event
really helps us do with our community. We are kicking
things off with our first walk in Frint George's County
(29:46):
and that is on September twentieth. We have our Washington
DC walked at Alzheimer's event that is taking place on
September twenty seventh. We have our Southern Maryland Walk that
same day, and then too weeks later we have both
our Prii Counties Manassas walk in early October on the
eleventh and then on that Sunday whell we have our
(30:09):
Northern Virginia Walk on the twelfth of October here in
rest In and then our final walk would take place
November one in Winchester, Virginia.
Speaker 2 (30:18):
Fantastic.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Once again, that was President and CEO of the National
Capital Area Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, Kate Ruper.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
One more time.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Anything you need to know about Alzheimer's and dementia, go
to alz dot org.
Hi there, good morning. Thank you so much for listening
to this iHeartRadio station. Jenny Chase checking in once again
with my friends from the Alzheimer's Association. It's an honor
to have Dean Brenner with us. He's the chair of
the National Capital Area Board of Directors.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Hi Dean, Hi, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Jenny. Great to be with you.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
I am well, thank you. As usual, Lots to talk
about this morning, Dean. You guys just wrapped up your
international research conference known as AAIIC.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Want to hear all about that.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
I'll delve into all the research from the latest conference,
but I want to make sure everyone knows if you
need help, if you have a family member that you're
not sure what to do about, but you're concerned the
person could have Alzheimer's, or you have someone who's been
diagnosed and you have any question at all, you can
call our one eight hundred helpline, which is twenty four
(00:48):
to seven with real experts, and the number is eight
hundred two seven to thirty nine hundred. Again it's eight
hundred two seven two thirty nine hundred and our website
is alz dot org. So I just wanted to get
that right up front in case people just tuned in
and have some specific concern or question in mind. So
(01:12):
back to your question, Jenny. The research conference that we sponsored,
it was held a couple of weeks ago in Toronto. Actually,
we had eleven thousand researchers coming from all over the world,
the people, the top scientists in the world, working together, collaborating,
sharing information about what to do with this scourge of Alzheimer's.
(01:35):
You know, there are more than seven million people over
the age of sixty five in the United States who
have it, including there are other people below the age
of sixty five who have it. They're more than fourteen
million people trying to take care of the people who
have it. So it's obviously a giant, giant set of problems. Yeah,
and I know, Jenny, you're one of us. You have
(01:57):
it in your family. I lost my mom to Alzheimer's
or so.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I'm so sorry. Again.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
We need to do everything we can to accelerate these research,
to get to the research more quickly because so many
people are in need. Now that the study that we
call us.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Pointer, Yes, please fill us in on that.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
So you've probably heard and your listeners have probably heard
people say you know, get exercise, eat well, get a
good night's sleep. Those things are important for preventing heart disease,
they're important for lowing your blood blood pressure, preventing diabetes,
and some people over the years have said those things
(02:37):
are important to prevent Alzheimer's or at least to slow
down Alzheimer's. So there's a lot of anecdotal evidence about that,
and kind of intuitively all of us would think, yeah,
that's probably true. But we wanted at the Alzheimer's Association
to quantify in a scientific study could we prove that
(03:00):
those sorts of lifestyle improvements really work. There had been
a study in Finland. Finlan, of course, smaller country, a
lot of different things in their society that may or
may not be applicable here in the United States. So
we wanted to sponsor a broad scientific study that would
look into could we prove that these lifestyle improvements really
(03:24):
do work, really do slow down cognitive decline. So US
Pointer was a two year clinical trial run at locations
all over the United States. We at the Alzheimer's Association
spent fifty million dollars on this study, so very vigorous signs.
There were two groups in the study. Everyone who is
(03:46):
in the study was considered to be at risk of
Alzheimer's disease because most of them had a family member
either a mother a father who had Alzheimer's. Most of
them live very sedentary lifestyles. A large segment of them
had high blood pressure, some of them had diabetes, some
(04:09):
of them were and it was a diverse study. Sometimes
in the old days, these studies would just be done
with men. That's ridiculous. We know two thirds of the
people who have Alzheimer's aren't women. So it was diversus
to gender, it was diversus to racial characteristics, ethnic characteristics.
So it was truly scientifically rigorous. And there were two groups.
(04:32):
We divided the people into two groups. Group one were
people who had a structured program, so they went on
a diet, they had to do exercise that would be
closely monitored, They had to meet with a clinician once
a week to record exactly what they were doing, and
(04:57):
they were given certain cognitive ex exercizes, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles,
all that kind of stuff. The second group was kind
of left on their own. Hey, we're not going to
tell you what to do. We want you to do
in some manner, you know, eat a better diet, get
more sleep, get some exercise, and then report to us.
(05:21):
And the results were astonishing. So both groups of people
had improvement in their cognition, and specifically, the structured group
did substantially better than the people who were left on
their own. Okay, so this is the first time, Jenny,
(05:42):
that we can prove that these lifestyle improvements directly will
will slow down anyone's likelihood of getting Alzheimer's. A big,
big development.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
I was going to say, that is a huge advancement
that that makes me so excited.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
We now know these measures are scientifically proven to prevent
the onset of Alzheimer's. So in the old days, when
my mom got Alzheimer's, I mean, we'll never know why
my mom got Alzheimer's, but the doctor would just say,
you know, hey, really sorry, there's not much you could
(06:21):
have even done. I don't know why this happened. No,
now we know if you're especially the people who have
it in their family who are at risk of it,
people like you and me, Jenny, and there are millions
of us, there are things that we can specifically do
that are proven to prevent it. It isn't one hundred
(06:41):
percent full proof, of course, but there are things that
are going to make it less likely, that are going
to give us more time with our families.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
I mean, again, this is a landmark advancement. Right, I'm
so glad we're getting to talk about this this morning, right, And.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Of course they're going to has to be a lot
of follow up work because okay, so now we did
this try with about four thousand people at certain locations
all over the country, But how can we work in
communities across the country to implement these structured lifestyle improvements.
(07:16):
You know, it's going to have to be a joint federal, state, local,
community based set of programs to get the word out
before anything else. Hey, folks, you can go into a
program like this, it will improve your cognition. And then,
of course, how do we set up these programs from
(07:37):
coast to coast in every community. And the Alzheimer's Association
we've committed we're going to spend over the next couple
of years another forty million dollars to try to try
to implement this on a community level. Very very exciting
set of developments and research findings, and we also need
(07:59):
to do more research, and we'll be funding that on
the really digging in so we have blood tests for
all these people who are in the study, we have
brain scans for all the people in the study, and
they're going to be additional scientific findings that we can
make now that this comprehensive study was done.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
There is a specific area that I wanted to ask about,
lifestyle intervention. What are some of those findings and any
others you want to share.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
The genetics of Alzheimer's are very complicated. Just because my
mom had it, that doesn't mean I'm getting it. Just
because someone in your family had it, that does not
mean that you're going to get it. There's a specific
gene called apoe four, and if you have one of
those genes, that does make you more predisposed to get
(08:51):
it than if you didn't. Okay, but again not to
guarantee that you're going to get it, but if you
have two apoe four genes, there's a high likelihood that
you're going to get it. That is the strongest known
genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's, this apoe four. And so
when we talk about what we can do to prevent Alzheimer's.
(09:15):
The group of people who have apoe four, they're really
the they're really in the eye of the storm. Those
are the people that we really want to try to
see what can we do, because again, they're the most
likely people to get it. So interestingly, there was some
research that we unveiled at the conference that showed that
the most effective thing that people who have this gene
(09:40):
can do to slow down their chances of getting it,
of getting Alzheimer's is to walk. Yeah, walking is such
an important thing, it's such an important healthy habit. So certainly,
you know, diet and cognitive interaction, all those other things
(10:02):
are very important, but we found that the single most
important thing that people can do is wak. Try to
get five thousand, seven, ten thousand steps a day.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Yeah, you hear that a lot.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
And again, just to reiterate, you don't need anything to walk,
no equipment. If it's raining, you just wear some gear.
It costs nothing. It's so simple and.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
Right exactly, yeah, exactly. And then the second study that
we had has to do with healthy diet. And I
think this is something that maybe when I say, you're
going to say, oh, this just makes so much sense,
but it's never been proven or studied before. And that
(10:47):
is that we actually know that people who are on SNAP,
people who are on food stamps had slower cognitive decline
over ten years than people who were so food assistance programs, which,
of course here in the Washington d C. The DMV area,
(11:09):
there's food insecurity is such a gigantic problem. And of
course I'm very aware of the fact that I'm telling
you about this study the findings at the same time
that Congress has passed the law which is going to
make it harder for people to get food stamps, and
it's going to result in millions of people getting kicked
off food stamps. And maybe if people in Congress get
(11:33):
the message of this study, maybe they'll realize that was
a very very bad idea and they should try to
revoke that part of the big law that they cast.
But we know that a healthy diet can help reduce
the risk of cognitive decline. So you know, for people
who are eligible for food stamps, the people who were
on food stamps had slower cognitive decline than the people
(11:58):
who are eligible. But we're kicked off or didn't sign up,
or for whatever reason, weren't on them.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
If someone's not familiar with SNAP and food stamps. Are
there certain foods that are prohibited, like maybe some of
the stuff that's ultra processed or high fat. Is that
why those on it are healthier?
Speaker 3 (12:15):
Yeah? I don't think it's a matter so much as
what's prohibited, but I think that a higher proportion of
the food that people who are on food stamps eat
is healthier than the people who are at the same
income level but aren't on food stamps.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
Okay, so we're talking healthier diet, vegetables and lean meats, protein,
all that stuff fruit.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
Fruit exactly, blueberries, strawberries, apples, pears, bananas, in addition to
green vegetables, right, and trying to reduce the amount of meat.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
Okay, so we've covered exercise, we've covered nutrition. There are
some environmental factors such as pollution. At your conference, what
did you find?
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Yeah, and this part is of course disturbing, especially as
environmental regulations in some cases are being rolled back. And
again I hope this is another area that the folks
in Congress and the administration would rethink. But we look
specifically at lead pollution and people who grew up in
(13:24):
areas where there was higher lead levels. We're twenty percent
more likely to report memory problems when they got older,
which is amazing. And again, so much of Alzheimer's is
a scientific mystery. We don't know why these people necessarily
(13:46):
are more likely to get Alzheimer's just because they were
subject to exposure to lead when they were kids at
a higher level. But we do know that the facts
are the facts, and it turns out out that they're
much more likely to suffer from Alzheimer's if they were
exposed to levels higher levels of lead when they grew up.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
So like, take me for example, I was born in
nineteen sixty nine, so I guess that puts me in
the class of you know, and I grew up. I
grew up in a big city, a big metropolitan city.
When I hear what you're saying, should I just be like, oh, wow, hang.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
On, it's another little red light that should big red
light that should be going off for people.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Jenny's so right, it's brand new information being brand new.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
I don't think we've ever talked about that.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
The target group are people who were exposed to high
levels of lead between nineteen sixty and nineteen seventy four
and of course, you know, how could you have been
exposed to lead? Well, of course at that time, there
was no such thing really as unleaded gasoline. All gasoline
(14:55):
had lead in it, but pipes lead pain, you know,
factories that used lead. You know, the lead was very
prevalent in the sixties and seventies. So that again, it's
not a sure thing. It doesn't mean oh my god,
you're definitely one hundred percent going to get Alzheimer's, but
(15:16):
it is a big warning sign that if you're in
that group of people, you know, you should go to
your doctor. You should get a cognitive exam every year,
you should do the lifestyle things that we've been talking about.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Well, so, Dianas I'm checking the boxes, we've got diet, exercise,
exposure to lead.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
I'm really getting a lot of boxes filled in here.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
So sorry about that. No, I like that for you.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Yeah, I know, I mean it stinks for me. But
this is stuff that maybe a lot of people do
not realize. All these different things.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
I mean, one alone is bad, but then if you
combine all of this together, it's like, okay, man, this
is something that I really need to investigate.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
Especially at a time when it's early enough for you
to do something about it.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:01):
I mean, it's one thing if I'm telling you this
information and you're already over sixty five and you know, yeah,
maybe you know there's not that much you can do.
But for especially for people who are middle aged and younger,
we aren't living in an era anymore where there's nothing
you can do. You can make these lifestyle improvements that
(16:22):
I'm talking about. Yeah, and they are proven to actually
have good results.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
That is good to know.
Speaker 1 (16:28):
Okay, So let's segue now into treatments and medications because
there have been some really impressive advancements. What was in
your study that really stood out to you, guys?
Speaker 3 (16:37):
So there are two. The first one, Jenny is we
looked at people who are taking drugs to treat blood pressure, cholesterol,
and diabetes. And we know high cholesterol, high blood pressure,
and diabetes, those are all risk factors for Alzheimer's. And
what about the people who are diagnosed with those facts,
(17:00):
but they're on drugs. Maybe they're in their thirties, forties, fifties,
and they're on drugs. And it turns out if your
take for the group of people who are taking those drugs,
you are more you are more likely to slow cognitive decline.
So if you're diagnosed with high cholesterol and the doctor says,
(17:21):
you know, I really think you should take a stat
and you're diagnosed with diabetes, take the drugs that the
doctors are prestricting. It will result in a reduced chance
that you're going to get Alzheimer's, or if that you
do get Alzheimer's, it's going to give you more time
before it gets back.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
This is all just so enlightening.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
I mean, every time we talk it seems like advances
are being made, and I know there's still a long
way to go, but there is a sense of hope
that y'all are really making some headway.
Speaker 3 (17:51):
Right then, the last one that I wanted to talk about, Jenny,
is so there now are two drugs that people yes
can take yes and have what we would call mild
cognitive impairment sort of pre Alzheimer's the beginning or if
Alzheimer's is in an early stage. So we know what's
going on inside the brain of someone who has Alzheimer's
(18:14):
in an early stage is they get the build up
of this plaque. It's called amyloid, a protein that builds
up and so they're now two drugs. One is called
kim Be, the others called kissun La, and these two
drugs will take the plaque out. They're antibodies and they
generate an immune reaction in your brain, and over time
(18:35):
they've been proven to take out the plaque. Now, the
initial studies for these drugs were done over eighteen months.
That's the length of time that the FDA uses to
assess whether a drug is safe and whether it will
work or not. And both of these drugs passed and
they've been approved now for a while. But after that
eighteen months is up, often the drug manufacturer will keep
(19:00):
the study going. It's called an open label extension. And
in fact, in the eighteen month study, there's a group
of people who are in the placebo group. They're not
given the drug, but they don't know it. And in
this open label extension, in addition to letting people continue
to take the drug, the company will say to the
people who are in the placebo group, Hey, would you
(19:21):
like to go on the drug now? And invariably the
people will say yes. So both of the manufacturers of
these two drugs, like Kimbi and Kissunla, they release studies
from a longer term open label extension. So what happens
to people who stay in these drugs for three or
four years? Do they continue to do better, do they
(19:44):
continue to have improved cognition, or do they kind of
hit a wall? And it's very encouraging in both cases
for both drugs. It turns out that taking them beyond
the eighteen months continues to give people a benefit, continues
to slow down to cognitive decline. So now this is
(20:05):
again a game changer. When the drugs first came out,
there was a lot of skepticism. There were some doctors
who said, yeah, I don't really think it's enough of
a benefit. I'm not sure about this. Well, now it's
been truly proven between the initial study and this longer
term study. These two drugs are not cures, but they
(20:27):
do work as advertised. They do slow down Alzheimer's for
people who are in an early stage. So what that
means is if you see something you think is a
little bit off and a loved one, if you talk
to mother, father, aunt, uncle, neighbor, friend, and you just
see something it doesn't seem like normal aging. It isn't
(20:48):
just I forgot he for he or she forgot where
his keys or wild are. It is something beyond that.
Go get that person to a doctor. Get into the
doctor's office so that you can get an early enough diagnosis,
so that if the person does have early Alzheimer's, they
will they will qualify for one of these trucks.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Okays.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
I just you know, I have such a visceral reaction
to hearing you talk about this because we know, for
you and me both with with our family history, it
just I just I pray, I pray, pray, pray that
this is all going to at some point, it's all,
it's all going to combine and have the effect that
we are hoping for. So right, Sorry for getting on
my little emotional thing there.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
But Jenny, as you know that for both of us,
when the doctor said, hey, I'm really sorry your loved
one has Alzheimer's and there just isn't anything we can do.
I don't know about you, Jenny, but I remember where
I was at that exact moment. I remember that moment
is kind of etched into my memory. Nothing you can do,
(21:56):
are you kidding me? And you know, a good doctor,
a compassionate person, and he was just telling me the truth.
There wasn't anything. And now that's not the case anymore.
And you know, we have all kinds of high falutint studies,
and you know, I'm involved in all kinds of things
with the Alzheimer's Association. But the fact that that's not
(22:20):
true anymore, and that there is a medicine that the
doctor can give to people if the people qualify, if
you get the person in there early enough, and that's very,
very hard. I don't minimize that at all. It's hard
to speak up within a family. But that is such
a giant change that there are things that we can
do that it's not like, gee, you know, it's just
(22:43):
sort of a lost cause. No, this is a disease
now that's medical, that's treated medically. It's treated medically, just
like other diseases. And we just need people to get
the information. Which is why I'm so grateful to you
for having me onto.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
It is so my pleasure, Dean. If folks want more information,
what should they do? Where should they go?
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Okay, two things, So go to alz dot org on
the internet or call our one eight hundred number eight
hundred two seven to thirty nine hundred. But the biggest,
single thing that we do in the DMV in our
community is we have the Walk to End All timer
So in DC on the National Mall the morning of
(23:28):
September twenty seventh, we will have our Walk to End
Alzheimer's and hopefully we want to have you know, at
least a couple thousand people there. Our goal is to
try to raise a million dollars. Yes, that million dollars
is going to come from people who raise sixty five dollars,
people who raise one hundred and twenty dollars, and you know,
(23:51):
we need everyone. You can go to ALC dot org
or you can even google walk to End Alzheimer's. Come
to our walk on September twenty twenty seven. It's an
uplifting event. You will connect with other people who either
have gone through what you're going through or who we're
going through it now themselves too. You'll find a very
(24:13):
welcoming community. We're here to support you.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
Wonder we need.
Speaker 3 (24:17):
As many people as possible coming to that walk on
the National Mall.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
We certainly do. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
Dean Brenner is chair of the board of Directors of
the National Capital Area Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Now
we get to speak with Kate Ruper, who is president
and CEO of that chapter. Hi, Kate, good morning to you.
Very anxious to hear more about all of your walks
coming out.
Speaker 4 (24:39):
Thank you, Jenny, and thank you for joining us at
last year's Walk to an Alzheimer's event in Northern Virginia.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Pleasure.
Speaker 4 (24:45):
Our Walk to In Alzheimer's event is really the world's
largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer's care,
support and research. We have six walks right here in
our DMB community, Okay, and the fund that we raise
to the walk helped up on groundbreaking research and provide
free programs and services to people in our community that
are impacted by Alzheimer's and other dimensions. Yes, yes, yet,
(25:07):
and it's often really sort of what we call the
front door to the Alzheimer's Association, where it's the first
opportunity that people get to engage with other people in
the community that may be living with the disease or
serving as a caregiver, and it's just a wonderful way
for them to connect and more importantly, so they know
that they're not alone in this journey with Alzheimer's and
all other dimensions.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
What makes this particular event, the Walk to End Alzheimer's
so special for everybody who participates.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Well, at the walk, we get to celebrate the participants,
the donors to really help us advance that critical research
and the discovery of new treatment. And again we talk
a lot about help and hope for those in our community.
And one of the most I think inspiring parts of
our walk is the Promise Garden ceremony, and it's really
where each participant gets to hold a flower that signifies
(25:58):
their personal connection to the disease ease and really all
the colors together represent the diverse reasons that people come
together at the Walk to End Alzheimer's event, and there's really,
as you know, no currently any survivors, so this ceremony
really signifies, you know, our hope for the future. We
have one person who holds a single white flower that
really symbolizes our hope for Alzheimer's, for survivor in the future.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
I have a purple flower for my dad from last
year's walk. It is in my garden. I see it
every single day. It's just always such a special reminder
of him and what he went through and all the
great things that you guys do. Let's talk about the
funds that are raised through the walk. Where do those
all go?
Speaker 4 (26:43):
The walk is such a critical event to help us
provide funding for support services, which include our twenty four
to seven helpline and more than two hundred languages. We
have local support groups. We also have free educational programs
and again we are looking at advances and research for
better treatments and care. So every dollar helps us improve
(27:05):
the quality of life for those living with Alzheimer's and
their caregivers.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
Kate, if we can transition here, I want to talk
about your new app. I am just hearing about this
for the first time. What is this new app for
folks with Alzheimer's and other dementias?
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Tell us all about it.
Speaker 4 (27:20):
We are so excited. We just launched our new app.
It's called My All Journeys, so My ALV Journey, which
is a free mobile app that really offers personalized support
for those who are newly diagnosed in their care partners.
And the app has a variety of support in resources
with it. It offers information and activities that apply to
(27:43):
all types of dementia, so not only Alzheimer's, but you
can use the app to explore personalized resources step by step,
help what local support is in your area, other tools
and activities, and really, you know, it shares information based
on real life experience rances and we're so excited for
this resource set. Really help people have access, you know,
(28:05):
really what we say at their fingertips, right, you know,
support and resources they need to lead their daily lives.
It's on the Apple App Store or on Google Play Store.
Speaker 1 (28:14):
Okay, Kate, can you share the different ways that the
DMV community can get involved with all the great stuff
you're doing there at the Alzheimer's Association.
Speaker 4 (28:23):
That is a great question, Jenny. You know, first of all,
you can learn about Alzheimer's. You know, you can join
us at one of our upcoming free education programs, or
invite the Alzheimer's Association to come to your business organization
or staith based community. You can volunteer. You know, we
are a volunteer powered organization. You can become an advocate
and help plan event. You can call our one eight
(28:45):
hundred number which is one eight hundred two seven to
two thirty nine hundred, or visit a website at ALV
dot org, backslash, NCAA to learn more. And again you
can always get involved with our walk to and Alzheimer's
event as well.
Speaker 2 (29:00):
Kate, how do folks get signed out for that?
Speaker 4 (29:02):
That is a great question. Well, they can sign up
at alz dot org, backslash NCA Walks that's with our
National Capital Area chapter, and you can select one of
the six walks that we have in our community. You
can either register as an individual or you can start
a team. Our participation is free, but we always encourage
people to fundraise and really, you know, there's different ways
(29:25):
to become engaged with a walk. You can become a volunteer,
but we just know this is such an important part
of our community with new treatments emerging, you know, in
the fight tot Alzheimer's and other dementia, really the time
for hope and that's what our walks in Alzheimer's Event
really helps us do with our community. We are kicking
things off with our first walk in Frint George's County
(29:46):
and that is on September twentieth. We have our Washington
DC walked at Alzheimer's event that is taking place on
September twenty seventh. We have our Southern Maryland Walk that
same day, and then too weeks later we have both
our Prii Counties Manassas walk in early October on the
eleventh and then on that Sunday whell we have our
(30:09):
Northern Virginia Walk on the twelfth of October here in
rest In and then our final walk would take place
November one in Winchester, Virginia.
Speaker 2 (30:18):
Fantastic.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Once again, that was President and CEO of the National
Capital Area Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, Kate Ruper.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
One more time.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Anything you need to know about Alzheimer's and dementia, go
to alz dot org.
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