Losing ground Calorie conscious Search for DDT Relaxation works wonders by Kelli Whitlock Seven of 10 americans with alzheimer's disease live at home, most under the care of family and friends. The techniques could decrease health care costs and caregiver stress, and allow patients to remain at home instead of being moved to a long-term care facility.
Studies suggest that behavioral problems are the reason many people become institutionalized.
It's not the memory problems. The failure to use behavioral or psychological interventions in demented populations appears to stem, at least in part, from the belief that the memory impairment of alzheimer's disease patients precludes their learning new skills or behavioral repertoires, she says. Suhr studied two forms of relaxation training in 34 pairs of alzheimer's patients and caregivers. The patients ranged in age from 65 to 80, were living at home, exhibited behavioral problems that affected daily functioning, and had mild to moderate cognitive impairments. Participants were randomly assigned to either a progressive muscle relaxation training group or a group that used an imagery technique to promote relaxation.