Dr Eric Berg has revealed the three earliest signs of dementia. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the medical expert explained that the following problems can strike 10 years before you start experiencing cognitive changes, including memory problems.
Dr Berg shared that it takes many years for the processes that underlie dementia to develop. However, there are three symptoms that occur 10 years before any cognitive changes can strike.
1. Loss of smell
The doctor shared that the first red flags that could alert you to the brain-robbing condition are sensory changes, including a loss of smell. Dr Berg said: “The nerve endings in your sinuses directly go right into the back of the brain.
“There’s no blood-brain barrier. It’s like a vulnerable place that is exposed to create damage. So, it’s going to show up first.”
What’s worse, the doctor noted that this first symptom can be hard to pick up. He added: “Sometimes, people can get used to it because it’s an absence of something. It’s not like a pain that you notice.
Dr Berg said: “If you have sleeping problems, it could be 100 different reasons. But there’s a high association between sleeping problems, insomnia, and dementia.”
From sleeping longer than usually to acting out your dreams, there are many sleeping behaviours that could ring alarm bells.
After these three early signs appear, the doctor urged to look out for the following key symptoms:
- Agitation (getting agitated easily)
- Restlessness (the person can’t just sit still)
- Aggression (they might be angry or snap at you)
- Memory loss (forgetting words or names, mixing up words, longer lag time between answering you, the inability to locate where their car is or where their keys are)
- Emotional drop (they no longer have higher levels of emotion or suffer from apathy)
- Incontinence (the loss of control of the bladder or bowels)
- Constipation.
While these red flag signs could point to the brain condition, they don’t guarantee dementia, Dr Berg added. The NHS recommends speaking to a GP about the early signs of the mind-robbing disease.
