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Professor Zahinoor Ismail
Name:
Professor Zahinoor Ismail
Job title:
Neuropsychiatrist; Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, Epidemiology, and Pathology
Place of work / study:
Hotchkiss Brain Institute and O’Brien Institute for Public Health; Cumming School of Medicine; University of Calgary
Area of Research:
Dementia prognostication and early dementia detection using non-cognitive markers, treatment of neuropsychiatric syndromes across the cognitive spectrum, pharmacoepidemiology
How is your work funded?
Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging, Brain Canada.
Tell us a little about yourself:
I was born in Uganda, moved to London at the age of 3, and then to Canada at the age of 6. I started playing hockey and other winter sports shortly after coming to Canada. My British accent dissolved far too quickly thereafter. I was a full-time clinician for 15 years before switching gears to a research career. I started with clinical trials and intervention studies and then started adding imaging, biomarkers, and observational cohort studies to the mix. The strong clinical background informs much of our work – the patients ask the research questions, and then we look for answers.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself:
I still snowboard, at the age of 52!
Why did you choose to work in dementia?
I always wanted to work with seniors, likely because I was close to my grandmother. It’s also part of my culture to provide for the elderly.
Can we find you on Twitter?
Not personally, but this is the Twitter account for the Canadian Conference on Dementia, which I chair
Alzheimer's Association
Dr Connor Richardson
[…] Professor Zahinoor Ismail, from the University of Calgary and the University of Exeter, who led the research, emphasized the importance of early vitamin D supplementation, preferably before the onset of cognitive decline. Dr William Grant, a vitamin D expert, advocates for a much higher daily vitamin D intake than the current UK government recommendation, particularly during winter, to maintain optimal brain health. He recommends a daily intake of 1000 to 3000iu of vitamin D from October to March for adults and teenagers. […]