One in ten older Americans are living with dementia, but many cases could be prevented or delayed with certain lifestyle choices, experts say. “With increasing longevity and the aging of the Baby Boom generation, cognitive impairment is projected to increase significantly over the next few decades, affecting individuals, families, and programs that provide care and services for people with dementia,” Jennifer J. Manly, PhD, tells Columbia University Irving Medical Center. More and more research emphasizes how important a healthy lifestyle is for brain health and longevity. Here are simply activities that can help prevent dementia, according to doctors.
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Exercise Daily
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Regular exercise is key for helping prevent dementia. “Maintaining a regular exercise routine — 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity throughout your week — helps to maintain good cardiovascular health to ward off dementia,” neurologist Henry Paulson, MD, tells Michigan Medicine. “People often forget how important simple aerobic exercise is for the brain. A brisk walk, or a stint on a stationary bike, three times a week helps your brain work better. And it’s good for your body, too.”
Train Your Brain
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Keep your brain active with constant challenges and exercises. “The idea behind brain training is that just as exercise helps you keep your body in good shape, mental exercises help your brain stay in good shape,” says behavioral neurologist Glen R. Finney, MD, director of the Memory and Cognition Program at Geisinger. “While it’s unclear if games geared specifically toward dementia and Alzheimer’s prevention actually work, there’s evidence that keeping your mind sharp and taking good care of yourself can help keep your brain healthy, too.”
Make Time For Friends
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Social contact is a key factor in preventing dementia, experts say. “Social connections matter for our cognitive health, and the risk of social isolation is potentially modifiable for older adults,” Thomas Cudjoe, MD, MPH, tells Johns Hopkins Health. “Socially isolated older adults have smaller social networks, live alone and have limited participation in social activities,” says Alison Huang, PhD, MPH, senior research associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “One possible explanation is that having fewer opportunities to socialize with others decreases cognitive engagement as well, potentially contributing to increased risk of dementia.”
Go To Bed
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Sleep health and quality is strongly linked to dementia. “Inadequate sleep in midlife raises one’s risk of dementia,” says Andrew E. Budson, MD. “There are many reasons for poor sleep in middle age: shift work, insomnia, caretaking responsibilities, anxiety, and pressing deadlines, just to name a few. Although not all of these are controllable, some are. For example, if you’re currently only sleeping four to five hours because you’re up late working every night, you might want to change your habits, otherwise you risk developing dementia by the time you retire!”
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Get Your Eyes Checked
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There is growing evidence that vision is linked to dementia. “In our team’s research, dementia risk was higher even when someone had poor vision while wearing their current glasses or contact lenses,” ophthalmologist Joshua Ehrlich, MD, MPH, tells Michigan Medicine. “So not only is it important to get your vision checked regularly and invest in glasses or contacts if you need them, it’s also important to get new lenses if your prescription changes. And if your eye exam suggests a need for surgery, such as for cataracts, or other follow-up, be sure to make an appointment to get the care that you need.”
Mediterranean Diet
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Eating a healthy, nutritious diet can help prevent dementia. “You may know that a Mediterranean diet — rich in fruits, vegetables, olive oil, legumes, whole grains and fish — offers many heart-healthy benefits. But a Mediterranean diet may also benefit your brain,” says Jonathan Graff-Radford, MD. “Studies show people who closely follow a Mediterranean diet are less likely to have Alzheimer’s disease than people who don’t follow the diet.” Dr. Graff-Radford points out that the diet can “reduce the risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) — a transitional stage between the cognitive decline of normal aging and the more-serious memory problems caused by dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.”