2 Daily Drinks Linked To 18% Lower Dementia Risk (M)
Two drinks linked to lower dementia risk and slower cognitive decline.
Category: Dementia
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How To Make Your Brain 10 Years Younger
People showed improved memory and the ability to perform tasks more quickly.
People showed improved memory and the ability to perform tasks more quickly.
Regular moderate exercise is enough to slow brain ageing by the equivalent of ten years.
The study followed 876 people over 65 years old across more than 10 years.
They were given tests of memory and thinking skills along with brain scans.
Unfortunately, 90 percent of the people in the study reported that they did light or no exercise.
Light exercise included things like yoga and walking.
Moderate exercise included things like aerobics, callisthenics and running.
Dr Clinton B. Wright, one of the study’s authors, said:
“The number of people over the age of 65 in the United States is on the rise, meaning the public health burden of thinking and memory problems will likely grow.
Our study showed that for older people, getting regular exercise may be protective, helping them keep their cognitive abilities longer.”
After five years, those who were at least moderately active could remember more words from a list and could perform simple tasks more quickly.
Dr Wright said:
“Physical activity is an attractive option to reduce the burden of cognitive impairment in public health because it is low cost and doesn’t interfere with medications.
Our results suggest that moderate to intense exercise may help older people delay aging of the brain, but more research from randomized clinical trials comparing exercise programs to more sedentary activity is needed to confirm these results.”
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The study was published in the journal Neurology (Willey et al., 2016).
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The Personality Trait That Lowers Dementia Risk
The trait may encourage people to keep their mind active, which is a protective factor against dementia.
The trait may encourage people to keep their mind active, which is a protective factor against dementia.
People who are open to experience have a lower risk of developing dementia.
This personality trait, one of the five major aspects of personality, is linked to being more imaginative, sensitive to feelings, intellectually curious and seeking variety.
Openness may encourage people to keep their mind active, which a protective factor against dementia.
People who are more open also tend to have higher levels of education, which also reduces dementia risk.
The second personality trait linked to dementia in the study was neuroticism.
However, not all traits are protective: being neurotic increased the risk of developing dementia by 6 percent, the researchers found.
The major personality trait of neuroticism involves a tendency towards worry and moodiness.
People who are neurotic are more likely to experience negative emotions like depression, anxiety, guilt and envy.
Other studies have found that being neurotic may double the risk of developing dementia later in life.
Neurotic people are particularly sensitive to chronic stress.
Personality, though, is not destiny, when it comes to dementia — good brain health is about nature and nurture.
Many factors reduce dementia risk, such as a healthy lifestyle, which includes eating properly and getting enough exercise.
Indeed, making four out of five critical lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by 60 percent.
Keeping the mind active is thought to reduce dementia risk.
Learning new activities, travelling and deepening social relationships may all be beneficial.
The present study included 524 people who were given tests of personality and symptoms of pre-dementia.
Ms Emmeline Ayers, the study’s first author, explained:
“While more studies are needed, our results provide evidence that personality traits play an independent role in the risk for or protection against specific pre-dementia syndromes.
From a clinical perspective, these findings emphasize the importance of accounting for aspects of personality when assessing for dementia risk.”
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The study was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (Ayers et al., 2020).
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This Lifesaving Ingredient Prevents Alzheimer’s
There are around 5.5 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s and deaths have almost doubled in two decades.
There are around 5.5 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s and deaths have almost doubled in two decades.
Exercise could be the lifesaving ingredient that prevents Alzheimer’s disease.
Higher levels of fitness were linked to less deterioration of critical nerve fibers in the brain, the so-called ‘white matter’.
The brain’s white matter is the bundle of nerve fibers the neurons use to communicate with each other.
People with lower levels of fitness had weaker white matter and lower brain function.
Dr Kan Ding, the study’s first author, said:
“This research supports the hypothesis that improving people’s fitness may improve their brain health and slow down the aging process.”
The scientists measured people’s cardiorespiratory fitness along with carrying out brain scans.
Dr Rong Zhang, study co-author, said:
“Evidence suggests that what is bad for your heart is bad for your brain.
We need studies like this to find out how the two are intertwined and hopefully find the right formula to help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.”
Further research at the O’Donnell Brain Institute at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is now examining how much exercise works and whether it is ever too late.
The study will also look at the effects of cholesterol levels and blood pressure on preserving brain function.
Dr Ding said:
“A lot of work remains to better understand and treat dementia.
But, eventually, the hope is that our studies will convince people to exercise more.”
The study was published in the journal Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease (Ding et al., 2017).
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