Early indicators of dementia: 5 behaviour changes to look for after age 50
Calgary (Canada) (The Conversation): Dementia is often thought of as a memory problem, like when an elderly person asks the same questions or misplaces things. In reality, individuals with dementia will not only experience issues in other areas of cognition like learning, thinking, comprehension and judgement, but they may also experience changes in behaviour.
It's important to understand what dementia is and how it manifests. I didn't imagine my grandmother's strange behaviours were an early warning sign of a far more serious condition.
She would become easily agitated if she wasn't successful at completing tasks such as cooking or baking. She would claim to see a woman around the house even though no woman was really there. She also became distrustful of others and hid things in odd places.
These behaviours persisted for some time before she eventually received a dementia diagnosis.
Cognitive and behavioural impairment
When cognitive and behavioural changes interfere with an individual's functional independence, that person is considered to have dementia. However, when cognitive and behavioural changes don't interfere with an individual's independence, yet still negatively affect relationships and workplace performance, they are referred to as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild behavioural impairment (MBI), respectively.
MCI and MBI can occur together, but in one-third of people who develop Alzheimer's dementia, the behavioural symptoms come before cognitive decline.
Spotting these behavioural changes, which emerge in later life (ages 50 and over) and represent a persistent change from longstanding patterns, can be helpful for implementing preventive treatments before more severe symptoms arise. As a medical science PhD candidate, my research focuses on problem behaviours that arise later in life and indicate increased risk for dementia.
Five behavioural signs to look for
There are five primary behaviours we can look for in friends and family who are over the age of 50 that might warrant further attention.
1. Apathy
Apathy is a decline in interest, motivation and drive.
An apathetic person might lose interest in friends, family or activities. They may lack curiosity in topics that normally would have interested them, lose the motivation to act on their obligations or become less spontaneous and active. They may also appear to lack emotions compared to their usual selves and seem like they no longer care about anything.
2. Affective dysregulation
Affective dysregulation includes mood or anxiety symptoms. Someone who shows affective dysregulation may develop sadness or mood instability or become more anxious or worried about routine things such as events or visits.
3. Lack of impulse control
Impulse dyscontrol is the inability to delay gratification and control behaviour or impulses.
Someone who has impulse dyscontrol may become agitated, aggressive, irritable, temperamental, argumentative or easily frustrated. They may become more stubborn or rigid such that they are unwilling to see other views and are insistent on having their way. Sometimes they may develop sexually disinhibited or intrusive behaviours, exhibit repetitive behaviours or compulsions, start gambling or shoplifting, or experience difficulties regulating their consumption of substances like tobacco or alcohol.
4. Social inappropriateness
Social inappropriateness includes difficulties adhering to societal norms in interactions with others.
Someone who is socially inappropriate may lose the social judgement they previously had about what to say or how to behave. They may become less concerned about how their words or actions affect others, discuss private matters openly, talk to strangers as if familiar, say rude things or lack empathy in interactions with others.
5. Abnormal perceptions or thoughts
Abnormal perception or thought content refers to strongly held beliefs and sensory experiences.
Someone with abnormal perceptions or thoughts may become suspicious of other people's intentions or think that others are planning to harm them or steal their belongings. They may also describe hearing voices or talk to imaginary people and/or act like they are seeing things that aren't there.
Before considering any of these behaviours as a sign of a more serious problem, it's important to rule out other potential causes of behavioural change such as drugs or medications, other medical conditions or infections, interpersonal conflict or stress, or a recurrence of psychiatric symptoms associated with a previous psychiatric diagnosis. If in doubt, it may be time for a doctor's visit.
The impact of dementia
Many of us know someone who has either experienced dementia or cared for someone with dementia. This isn't surprising, given that dementia is predicted to affect one million Canadians by 2030.
While people between the ages of 20 and 40 may think that they have decades before dementia affects them, it's important to realize that dementia isn't an individual journey. In 2020, care partners including family members, friends or neighbours spent 26 hours per week assisting older Canadians living with dementia. This is equivalent to 235,000 full-time jobs or
7.3 billion annually.
These numbers are expected to triple by 2050, so it's important to look for ways to offset these predicted trajectories by preventing or delaying the progression of dementia.
Identifying those at risk
While there is currently no cure for dementia, there has been progress towards developing effective treatments, which may work better earlier in the disease course.
More research is needed to understand dementia symptoms over time; for example, the online CAN-PROTECT study assesses many contributors to brain aging.
Identifying those at risk for dementia by recognising later-life changes in cognition, function as well as behaviour is a step towards not only preventing consequences of those changes, but also potentially preventing the disease or its progression. (The Conversation)
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3 Indians arrested in Canada for shooting outside home
Ottawa (PTI): Three Indian nationals have been arrested by Canadian police on an anti-extortion patrol and charged after bullets were fired at a home.
Harjot Singh (21), Taranveer Singh (19) and Dayajeet Singh Billing (21) face one count each of discharging a firearm, and all have been remanded in custody until Thursday, the Surrey Police Service (SPS) said in a statement on Monday.
The suspects were arrested by patrol officers after an early morning report of shots fired and a small fire outside a home in Surrey's Crescent Beach neighbourhood, the LakelandToday reported.
On February 1, 2026, the SPS members were patrolling in Surrey’s Crescent Beach neighbourhood when reports came in of shots being fired and a small fire outside a residence near Crescent Road and 132 Street.
The three accused were arrested by SPS officers a short time later, the statement said.
SPS’s Major Crime Section took over the investigation, and the three men have now been charged with Criminal Code offences, it said.
All three have been charged with one count each of discharging a firearm into a place contrary to section 244.2(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.
The investigation is ongoing, and additional charges may be forthcoming. All three have been remanded in custody until February 5, 2026.
The SPS has confirmed they are all foreign nationals and has engaged the Canada Border Services Agency, it said.
One of the suspects suffered injuries, including two black eyes, the media report said.
Surrey police Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton said on Monday that the suspect had refused to comply with instructions to get out of the ride-share vehicle and started to "actively resist."
"As we were trained, he was taken to the ground and safely handcuffed," said Houghton.
A second suspect with a black eye was also injured in the arrest after refusing to comply, Houghton said.
The arresting officers were part of Project Assurance, an initiative that patrols neighbourhoods that have been targeted by extortion violence.
Houghton said the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is also involved because the men are foreign nationals, and the trio may face additional charges.
It's not clear if the men are in the country on tourist visas, a study permit, or a work permit, but Houghton said CBSA has started its own investigation into the men's status.
Surrey has seen a number of shootings at homes and businesses over the last several months, but there's been an escalation since the new year.
