According to recent estimates, the number of people who are expected to develop Alzheimer's is expected to double during the next two decades.
This disease, which causes the gradual loss of memory and other brain functioning can run in families.
However, there are other factors that can put a person at risk.
These factors are completely under your control, which means that you can take a proactive role and dramatically reduce your risk.
Most people will experience some degree of memory loss as they get older.
As people age, their risk for Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia increase.
This can have a debilitating effect on a person's quality of life as it robs the patient of her independence.
Numerous studies have evaluated the way the brain functions.
Much of this research is conducted using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans.
This allows scientists to asses the level that various regions of the braining are functioning.
The patient will perform different tasks that require the use of cognitive functioning.
Scientists can tell how well the brain is working by examining the amount of blood flow to the brain.
Researchers at UCLA analyzed the brain activity of a group of seniors between the ages of 55 and 78.
All of the participants had normal brain functioning.
Half of the seniors in the study almost never used the internet.
The other half actively used the internet every day.
The participants all had similar educational backgrounds.
The participants were each asked to perform a task on the internet.
Researchers scanned their brains as they did this.
Every day for a two week period, the participants surfed the internet for an hour.
Their tasks included answering questions on a variety of topics.
They also had to visit websites, research and read information.
Two weeks later, the participants returned to UCLA so that researchers could scan their brains again as they performed similar tasks on the internet.
Researchers found that the brain activity of the participants who rarely used the internet was similar to the brain waves of those who were long time regular internet users.
During the initial scans, the participants who rarely used the internet had a lower level of brain activity.
Their improvements were evident in the parts of the brain that are responsible for memory, reading, and language skills.