Earlier this week, I was drafting an email to a co-worker when I drew a complete blank on their last name. For at least a few seconds, I could not remember it to save my life. It did come to me, but the length of time it took was concerning.
That wasn’t the first time of late when it took me what felt like longer than it should to remember something I should easily have been able to recall.
My maternal grandmother suffered from dementia and my paternal grandfather and father died of Alzheimer’s. With dementia being more prevalent in women than men, I couldn’t help but wonder:
Were these warning signs or was I just being paranoid?
What is Dementia?
Dementia is a catch-all term for diseases and conditions that are characterized by a decline in memory, problem-solving and language, and other thinking skills that we need to perform everyday activities. Alzheimer’s disease is perhaps the most well-known type of dementia, accounting for 60-80% of cases according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
5 Ways to Fight Dementia
Dementia cannot be prevented but substantial evidence shows that adopting or maintaining a healthy lifestyle can reduce your risk as you age. If dementia is of concern for you as it is for me, here are 5 easy ways you can fight dementia now.
Exercise Your Body
Aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular and metabolic health, both of which are important for brain health. A combined analysis of several studies shows that exercising earlier in life can reduce the risk of developing dementia by as much as 30%. For Alzheimer’s specifically, it’s 45%.
Similar studies suggest that those who begin exercising later in life fair better than those who don’t, and can reduce some cognitive decline.
So how much do you need to exercise to reap benefits? At least 30 minutes of moderate aerobics a day for a total of 150 minutes. Moderate means brisk walking or riding a bike. If you’re a runner, you can cut that down to 75 minutes total a week.
Exercise such as yoga or stretching won’t produce the same results because they don’t have the same cardiovascular effect on the brain. These activities do have other health benefits, so the key is to find where they can also be incorporated.
Exercise Your Brain
Exercising your brain is equally as important as exercising your body in the fight again dementia. Brain exercises and stimulation delays a decline in thinking skills.
Keeping the brain active by doing crossword puzzles, quizzes and picture puzzles continually challenges the brain and keeps it thinking and ‘moving’.
Other ways to challenge the brain includes learning a new language or new skill. If you’re thinking about taking that adult education class, go ahead! It’ll do your brain good.
Eat a Healthy Diet
I can’t help but notice that they key to preventing so many illnesses is a good diet.
Processed foods have become a mainstay, and with them more chemicals than you can pronounce. It’s no wonder then that doctors and scientists continually point to a ‘clean diet’ of unprocessed natural foods to right size our health.
The same holds true in the prevention of dementia.
The National Institute on Aging suggests that the Mediterranean diet shows evidence of substantially reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s. The Mediterranean diet emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seafood, unsaturated fat, and lower amounts of eggs, sweet and red meats.
Quit Smoking
There’s nothing good about smoking.
The effects of smoking on your body and overall health are staggering. Additionally, studies have shown that smoking doubles the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s.
Smoking raises your blood pressure and constricts blood vessels. It can cause blood clots, which can lead to mini-strokes. Mini strokes are known to be a causal factor in vascular dementia.
If you don’t smoke now, don’t start. If you do, talk to your doctor about a cessation program.
Cut Out Excessive Drinking
As with any indulgence, alcohol in moderation doesn’t have a lasting impact on your health. However, excessive alcohol consumption over a long period of time does.
The effects of alcohol abuse on the brain are astounding. Indeed consuming large amounts of alcohol has shown to kill off brain cells and subsequently cause brain damage. When alcohol is broken down by the body, it produces a chemical that is toxic to brain cells.
The effects of alcohol in the brain as so impactful, that almost 40% of early-onset dementia cases were the result of alcohol-related brain damage.
Conclusion
While I don’t think my little lapse in memory was an indicator of possible dementia, my family history is still cause for concern. I’d be remiss if I didn’t practice these 5 easy ways to prevent a diagnosis of dementia in my future.