AsimpletypeofdailymeditationmayalterthecourseofAlzheimer'sWrittenbyCatharinePaddock,Ph.D.onNovember16,2018—FactcheckedbyJasminCollierRecentresearchhasfoundthatshortdailypracticeofmind-bodytherapymayhelpalleviatesomeofthesignsandsymptomsthatoftenprecededementia.ShareonPinterestPracticinganeasytypeofmeditationdailymayrelievesomedementiasymptoms.Theresearchersbehindthenewstudyassessedagroupofolderadultsexperiencingmemorydifficultieswhopracticed12minutesperdayofmusiclisteningorsimpleyogameditationfor12weeks.Samplesoftheirbloodfrombeforeandafterthe3monthsoftherapyrevealedchangesinlevelsofcertainmarkerswithassociationstocellagingandAlzheimer’sdisease.Thesechangesalsolinkeddirectlytoimprovementsinsubjectiveassessmentsofcognitivefunction,mood,sleep,andqualityoflife.Dr.KimInnes,aprofessoratWestVirginiaUniversitySchoolofPublicHealthinMorgantown,ledthestudyandisfirstauthorofthestudypaper,whichfeaturesintheJournalofAlzheimer’sDisease.BloodmarkersaspredictorsofAlzheimer’sTheteamchosetomeasureanumberofbloodmarkersthat“haveemergedaspossiblepredictorsofcognitivedeclineanddementia.”Theseincludedtelomerelength,telomeraseactivity,andlevelsofcertainbeta-amyloidpeptideswithlinkstoAlzheimer’sdisease.Telomeresare“protectivecaps”thatworktopreventtheendsofchromosomesfromdeteriorating.Telomeraseisanenzymethathelpspreservetelomerelength.Reductionintelomerelengthandtelomeraseactivityareboth“markersofcellularaging.”SymptomsofAlzheimer’sdisease,suchasagradualdeclineintheabilitytoremember,think,andmakedecisions,emergelongafterthechangesinthebrainthatcausethemhavealreadytakenhold.Forthisreason,andbecauseofthedifficultiesofdiagnosingthisformofdementiafromsymptoms,researchersarepushingforamodelthat“definesAlzheimer’sbybrainchanges,notsymptoms.”TheyarguethatthiswouldhelpcliniciansdiagnoseAlzheimer’smuchearlierandgivetherapiesachancetomakearealdifferenceindelaying,ifnotaverting,thedebilitatingsymptoms.OnechangethatoftenoccursinthebrainsofpeoplewithAlzheimer’sdiseaseisclumpsofbeta-amyloidprotein.Whethe