Is there any test to detect the chances of Alzheimer's disease?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 33-year-old male, and I am a heavy smoker. I smoke cigarettes, and I also vape a lot. I have a family history of Alzheimer's disease; my grandfather had this condition. My doctor told me that smoking increases the chance of developing Alzheimer's disease. Is it true? Can you please suggest easy methods to quit? Are there any tests that I can get done to know my chances of developing Alzheimer's disease?

Thank you.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I completely understand your concern about Alzheimer's disease (AD) regarding your family history. The relationship between tobacco and AD is complicated. The majority of research shows that tobacco itself does not increase the AD risk, and at least one study showed that it may decrease the risk; however, the last mentioned one was sponsored by a cigarette-making industry. On the other hand, people usually use AD for all forms of dementia. Unfortunately, this error even occurs in some family physicians.

There are multiple forms of dementia. AD is the most prevalent among the elderly. Nevertheless, the second most prevalent dementia is ‘vascular dementia (VD)’. There is plenty of evidence that smoking increases the risk of VD significantly. Accordingly, the general risk of smoking for well-being and especially for VD outweighs its minor neutral effect for AD.

I hope this helps you.

Thank you.

Regards.