Declining brain health

The Alzheimer’s Association explains that dementia “triggers a decline in thinking skills, also known as cognitive abilities, severe enough to impair daily life and independent function. They also affect behavior, feelings and relationships.”

Dementia, an umbrella term for several diseases caused by abnormal brain changes – affects more than 55 million people worldwide, with nearly 10 million new cases diagnosed each year, according to WHO. By 2030, experts predict this number will rise to 78 million.

With such staggering statistics, researchers are investigating all possible risk factors – including infections like herpes that spreads through the most natural forms of human connection.

While the virus is considered a minor health issue, the idea that it could affect brain health decades later is an unsettling possibility.