Hosted by Indian Country ECHO.
Social capital is associated with better health, lower risks for dementia, disability, and mortality. In the vast majority of cases Alzheimer’s disease is not inherited. The most important risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease is age.
In this presentation, Blythe Winchester MD, MPH, CMD, AGSF, discusses brain health in Indian Country. She shares on the differences between the healthy brain and the brain with Alzheimer’s including visible differences, how to maintain a healthy brain, Alzheimer’s impact on the major regions of the brain, and ways to be a “super-ager”.
Presenter Bio:
Blythe Winchester MD, MPH, CMD, AGSF, is a board-certified Geriatrician and member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in Cherokee, NC. She practices at Cherokee Indian Hospital and is the Certified Medical Director at Tsali Care Center. She received her MD and MPH at UNC-Chapel Hill and did a Family Medicine Residency in Greenville, SC. Her Geriatrics fellowship was completed through the Mountain Area Health Education Center in Asheville, NC. Blythe has served on the Ethnogeriatrics Committee for the American Geriatrics Society since 2011. She recently received Fellow status through the American Geriatrics Society. Her presentations often focus on neurocognitive disorders among Tribal communities and her research focuses on Tribal Elders. Blythe is a retired member of the Smoky Mountain Rollergirls roller derby team and lives with her husband, 5 dogs, and a cat who thinks she is a dog. She loves music, animals, and beekeeping.
Resources Provided:
- Brain Health in Indian Country ECHO
- Healthy Heart, Healthy Brain
- Beer’s Criteria
- Social capital and risk and protective behaviors: a global health perspective
- The Nun Study Clinically silent AD, neuronal hypertrophy, and linguistic skills in early life
- The Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Positive Dementia Screen in American Older Adults
