The ABC News (7/26, Mohan-Sivasankar) website reports that “men with Alzheimer’s” may have “atypical symptoms” and may be “younger at diagnosis,” research suggests. What’s more, physicians “may be able to screen men for Alzheimer’s at even younger ages,” investigators posit. The findings of the 1,606-brain study were presented July 26 at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference 2016.

In “Social Issues,” the Washington Post (7/26, Bahrampour) reports that the study “also found that the disease attacks different areas of the brain in men and women.” In males, Alzheimer’s “spreads more quickly and more commonly attacks the cortex, which is responsible for behavior, language, and motor skills,” whereas in females, “the spread is slower and the disease more typically attacks the hippocampus, leading to memory problems.”

Related Links:

— “Alzheimer’s May Affect More Men Than Previously Thought, Researchers Say,” DR. SHYAM MOHAN-SIVASANKAR, ABC News, July 26, 2016.

HealthDay (7/25, Preidt) reports, “People with bipolar disorder [BD] may face a long wait from when their symptoms start to the time they get a proper diagnosis,” research indicates. On average, the delay “is six years.” The findings of the 27-study meta-analysis encompassing some 9,400 patients were published July 25 in the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Bipolar Diagnosis May Take Up to 6 Years,” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, July 25, 2016.

HealthDay (7/25, Bernstein) reports, “Teenage athletes are less likely to abuse prescription” pain medications “than kids who don’t play sports or exercise,” research published online July 25 in Pediatrics suggests. The study’s findings “run counter to some research in recent years detailing concerns about injured teen athletes abusing opioid” pain medications prescribed by physicians “and then moving on to use heroin.”

MedPage Today (7/25, Walker) reports that in arriving at the study’s conclusions, investigators “examined data from 191,660 respondents – 52% eighth graders and 48% tenth graders.”

Related Links:

— “Painkillers for Teen Athletes Won’t Spur Addiction: Study,” James Bernstein, HealthDay, July 25, 2016.

The Washington Times (7/25, Ernst) reports, “A survey by the George W. Bush Institute’s Military Service Initiative” of about 1,000 US adults suggests that “Americans have a warped understanding of veterans’ mental health issues.” The survey found that approximately “40 percent of adults in the US, Canada and the United Kingdom hold the erroneous belief that more than half of 2.8 million post-9/11 veterans have psychological problems.” Estimates made by the Rand Corporation, however, found that “10 and 20 percent of veterans struggle with mental health issues.”

Related Links:

— “Americans grossly overestimate number of veterans with mental problems, poll says,” Douglas Ernst, Washington Times, July 25, 2016.

In “Social Issues,” the Washington Post (7/24, Bahrampour) reported, “Work that involves complex thinking and interaction with other people seems to help protect against the onset of Alzheimer’s,” research indicated.

One study revealed that “while a ‘Western’ diet (characterized by red and processed meats, white bread, potatoes, pre-packaged foods, and sweets) is associated with cognitive decline, people who ate such food could offset the negative effects and experienced less cognitive decline if they also had a mentally stimulating lifestyle.”

A second study, which involved brain scans, revealed that “people with increased white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) – white spots that appear on brain scans and are commonly associated with Alzheimer’s and cognitive decline – were able to better tolerate WMH-related damage if they worked primarily with other people rather than with things or data.”

Related Links:

— “Complex jobs and social ties appear to help ward off Alzheimer’s, new research shows,” Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post, July 24, 2016.