How We Walk & Dementia

Could the way a person walks be a clue to the start of dementia?

It looks like the way someone walks, or more precisely changes in how they walk, may be an early sign of Alzheimer's Disease. And since finding Alzheimer's early on can mean starting treatment earlier, that treatment might be more successful.

A new study just presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference has found that certain subtle changes in how someone walks gave researchers clues about who might be developing early dementia.

Here's how that connection works. The brain controls how we walk by communicating among different areas. If that communication gets interfered with, then someone might start to have very small changes in the way they walk. And one reason it might get interfered with is because of Alzheimer's.

In a recent study out of the Mayo Clinic, researchers found that certain types of changes were more likely to mean early Alzheimer's. Those who started walking with a lower cadence and velocity along with a decrease in the length of the stride also ended up having more dementia.

The good news is that this is a very inexpensive test that can be done outside the clinical environment. If you notice a loved one slowing down and taking smaller walking strides over what they normally used to do, you might want to bring it up to the doctor to see if more robust testing is needed.