Dementia 'caused by false memories'

Neurological diseases linked to memory such as dementia and Alzheimer's could be due to the brain creating false memories, according to new research.

Scientists from Cambridge University found that it is entangled memories that cause the confusion in dementia patients, rather than memory loss.

Two groups of rats were presented with objects and then an hour later shown either the same object or a new one.

Results, published in journal Science, said that rats in the control group spent a longer time exploring the new object than those with a brain disorder, which indicated they were familiar with the old object.

The rats suffering from the brain injury spent around the same amount of time exploring the new and old objects and did not seem that interested in the new object, suggesting that they were already familiar with it.

This follows research published in the Occupational and Environmental Medicine Journal, which found that direct exposure to pesticides is linked with dementia.

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