As modern science continues its search for an Alzheimer’s cure, researchers have noticed that the brain disease hits women harder than it does men. And that’s not only because women have a longer life-expectancy, thereby giving them a greater chance of developing Alzheimer’s during their lifetimes. Scientists conducting a long-term study found that women who develop the disease also decline faster. “Our findings suggest that men and women at risk for Alzheimer’s may be having two very different experiences,” Katherine Lin, a senior at Duke University and lead researcher of a study that followed 400 men and women, said.
The Alzheimer’s Association also believes the disease might impact the genders in different ways, too. Last year, the nonprofit launched the Women’s Alzheimer’s Research Initiative, aimed at getting to the bottom of just that.