Alzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disorder that gradually destroys a person's memory and ability to learn, reason, make judgments, communicate and carry out daily activities.
As Alzheimer's progresses, individuals may also experience changes in personality and behavior, such as anxiety, suspiciousness or agitation, as well as delusions or hallucinations.
Although there is currently no cure for Alzheimer's, new treatments are on the horizon as a result of accelerating insight into the biology of the disease.
Research has also shown that effective care and support can improve quality of life for individuals and their caregivers over the course of the disease from diagnosis to the end of life.
According to researchers of Saint Louis University, decreased levels of testosterone in older men is now connected with Alzheimer's.
Scientists at the university involved with geriatric medicine claim that these low levels of testosterone is something that should not be overlooked especially in males who have memory problems or show indications of cognitive impairment.
The in-depth study included 153 Chinese men who were at least 55 years old that lived in areas that didn't have dementia.
Of these 153 men, 47 had minimal cognitive impairment with low levels of memory loss.
In the first year, 10 men apart of the group that had cognitive impairment developed Alzheimer's disease, low testosterone levels and elevated levels of the protein that is associated with Alzheimer's.
These findings verify that the findings in previous studies of older white males show that low levels of testosterone is associated with impaired thoughts and clear thinking.
The researcher's next step is to examine the use of testosterone and how it can be used to prevent the onset of Alzheimer's disease.