6 Ways You Can Train Your Brain to Avoid Dementia
Updated October 12, 2014.
Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.
Despite the best efforts of medical researchers, certain things in life remain inevitable: As long as we live, we get older. As we age, a number of different changes occur in our bodies and our brains that can make us more susceptible to injury and disease. However, we are not helpless. While we must get older (as the saying goes, it beats the alternative), we have some say in how healthy we remain.
While there is no guaranteed way to prevent the onset of dementia as we age, a review early in 2011 outlined some of the most promising methods, and called for further research in those areas. Happily, most of these strategies for healthy brain aging are both familiar and free. It boils down to what most doctors have recommended for disease of all types: diet, exercise, and staying active.
Eat Right
Diabetes and high cholesterol have both been associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, among other diseases. Both of these disorders can be addressed by eating healthily. In particular, high intakes of saturated fats and trans-fats have been associated with increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. Eating more fruits and vegetables has been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's in some people, though studies are very few. People with low levels of folate, which is found in green leafy vegetables, have been found to have an increased risk of Alzheimer's. Several studies have shown that adhering to a Mediterranean diet may also have benefits.
For more information, read the following:
Nutrition for Alzheimer's Prevention
Mediterranean Diet and a Healthy Brain
Get That Heart Pumping
Most of the studies looking at the effects of exercise on the brain rely on asking people to remember how much they had exercised, which is not the most reliable way to gather information. Still, most health professionals agree that exercise is good for the brain. Exercising helps ensure that enough blood is delivered to the brain tissue, providing nourishment and oxygen to help the brain stay healthy. Frequently, the aging brain is not only troubled by Alzheimer's, but other forms of dementia like vascular dementia, which can also be helped with exercise. That's one more reason to get on that treadmill.
Exercise Your Body to Keep Your Brain Healthy
Use It or Lose It
It used to be thought that it was impossible to grow new brain cells. However, we now know that the part of the brain responsible for forming new memories, called the hippocampus, continues to generate new brain cells into old age. The hippocampus has been shown to grow larger with memory exercises and training, even in adults. The theory of cognitive reserve suggests that having more brain connections increases our ability to cope even if some connections are lost to aging and dementia. So continue to learn new things: go to classes, keep reading, and do whatever other cognitively stimulating activities you enjoy.
Reconsider Other Habits
If tobacco's dangerous effects on the heart and lungs weren't enough, studies consistently show that smokers have an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. In fact, a paper published in 2011 demonstrated that even passive cigarette smoke inhalation can raise the risk of Alzheimer's disease in non-smokers.
The effects of alcohol are more nuanced. Light to moderate alcohol use may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. No such protection is found for heavy drinkers (usually meaning more than the equivalent of a glass of wine daily for women, or two for men). The effects of long-term alcohol use on Alzheimer's are unclear. However, heavy alcohol use can lead to shrinking of brain tissue, and in severe cases can contribute to dementia and other disorders of the brain and the rest of the body. While some alcohol may be beneficial to health, it must be done in moderation.
Smoking and Alzheimer's Risk
Watch Your Head
People who have suffered injury to the head are more prone to developing dementia. This is especially true if that injury is repeated -- professional boxers, for example, have been shown to have an increased risk of dementia later in life. While exercising is important, it's also important to wear a helmet when skiing, riding a bicycle, and so on.
Go Out and Have Fun
Studies have suggested that people with active social connections may have less risk of acquiring dementia, whereas lonely people may be more prone to developing impaired cognition. If you combine being social with being active, such as meeting someone to go for a walk, you could double the benefit!
While none of the activities above are guaranteed to prevent Alzheimer's, initial studies have been promising, and many of the suggestions are also applicable to other ailments of later life. If you'd like to get started on keeping your brain healthy, you can start with some of the suggested reading below.
Sources:
Solfrizzi V, Frisardi V, Seripa D, Logroscino G, Imbimbo BP, D'Onofrio G, Addante F, Sancarlo D, Cascavilla L, Pilotto A, Panza F., Mediterranean diet in predementia and dementia syndromes. Curr Alzheimer Res. 2011 Aug;8(5):520-42. Review.
Daviglus ML, Plassman BL, Pirzada A, Bell CC, Bowen PE, Burke JR, Connolly ES Jr, Dunbar-Jacob JM, Granieri EC, McGarry K, Patel D, Trevisan M, Williams JW Jr. Risk factors and preventive interventions for Alzheimer disease: state of the science. Arch Neurol. 2011 Sep;68(9):1185-90. Epub 2011 May 9. Review.
Chen R., Association of environmental tobacco smoke with dementia and Alzheimer's disease among never smokers. Alzheimers Dement. 2011 Dec 23. [Epub ahead of print]
O'Luanaigh C, O'Connell H, Chin AV, Hamilton F, Coen R, Walsh C, Walsh JB, Caokley D, Cunningham C, Lawlor BA. Loneliness and cognition in older people: The Dublin Healthy Ageing study. Aging Ment Health. 2011 Nov 30. [Epub ahead of print]
Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.
Despite the best efforts of medical researchers, certain things in life remain inevitable: As long as we live, we get older. As we age, a number of different changes occur in our bodies and our brains that can make us more susceptible to injury and disease. However, we are not helpless. While we must get older (as the saying goes, it beats the alternative), we have some say in how healthy we remain.
While there is no guaranteed way to prevent the onset of dementia as we age, a review early in 2011 outlined some of the most promising methods, and called for further research in those areas. Happily, most of these strategies for healthy brain aging are both familiar and free. It boils down to what most doctors have recommended for disease of all types: diet, exercise, and staying active.
Eat Right
Diabetes and high cholesterol have both been associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, among other diseases. Both of these disorders can be addressed by eating healthily. In particular, high intakes of saturated fats and trans-fats have been associated with increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. Eating more fruits and vegetables has been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's in some people, though studies are very few. People with low levels of folate, which is found in green leafy vegetables, have been found to have an increased risk of Alzheimer's. Several studies have shown that adhering to a Mediterranean diet may also have benefits.
For more information, read the following:
Nutrition for Alzheimer's Prevention
Mediterranean Diet and a Healthy Brain
Get That Heart Pumping
Most of the studies looking at the effects of exercise on the brain rely on asking people to remember how much they had exercised, which is not the most reliable way to gather information. Still, most health professionals agree that exercise is good for the brain. Exercising helps ensure that enough blood is delivered to the brain tissue, providing nourishment and oxygen to help the brain stay healthy. Frequently, the aging brain is not only troubled by Alzheimer's, but other forms of dementia like vascular dementia, which can also be helped with exercise. That's one more reason to get on that treadmill.
Exercise Your Body to Keep Your Brain Healthy
Use It or Lose It
It used to be thought that it was impossible to grow new brain cells. However, we now know that the part of the brain responsible for forming new memories, called the hippocampus, continues to generate new brain cells into old age. The hippocampus has been shown to grow larger with memory exercises and training, even in adults. The theory of cognitive reserve suggests that having more brain connections increases our ability to cope even if some connections are lost to aging and dementia. So continue to learn new things: go to classes, keep reading, and do whatever other cognitively stimulating activities you enjoy.
Reconsider Other Habits
If tobacco's dangerous effects on the heart and lungs weren't enough, studies consistently show that smokers have an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. In fact, a paper published in 2011 demonstrated that even passive cigarette smoke inhalation can raise the risk of Alzheimer's disease in non-smokers.
The effects of alcohol are more nuanced. Light to moderate alcohol use may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. No such protection is found for heavy drinkers (usually meaning more than the equivalent of a glass of wine daily for women, or two for men). The effects of long-term alcohol use on Alzheimer's are unclear. However, heavy alcohol use can lead to shrinking of brain tissue, and in severe cases can contribute to dementia and other disorders of the brain and the rest of the body. While some alcohol may be beneficial to health, it must be done in moderation.
Smoking and Alzheimer's Risk
Watch Your Head
People who have suffered injury to the head are more prone to developing dementia. This is especially true if that injury is repeated -- professional boxers, for example, have been shown to have an increased risk of dementia later in life. While exercising is important, it's also important to wear a helmet when skiing, riding a bicycle, and so on.
Go Out and Have Fun
Studies have suggested that people with active social connections may have less risk of acquiring dementia, whereas lonely people may be more prone to developing impaired cognition. If you combine being social with being active, such as meeting someone to go for a walk, you could double the benefit!
While none of the activities above are guaranteed to prevent Alzheimer's, initial studies have been promising, and many of the suggestions are also applicable to other ailments of later life. If you'd like to get started on keeping your brain healthy, you can start with some of the suggested reading below.
Sources:
Solfrizzi V, Frisardi V, Seripa D, Logroscino G, Imbimbo BP, D'Onofrio G, Addante F, Sancarlo D, Cascavilla L, Pilotto A, Panza F., Mediterranean diet in predementia and dementia syndromes. Curr Alzheimer Res. 2011 Aug;8(5):520-42. Review.
Daviglus ML, Plassman BL, Pirzada A, Bell CC, Bowen PE, Burke JR, Connolly ES Jr, Dunbar-Jacob JM, Granieri EC, McGarry K, Patel D, Trevisan M, Williams JW Jr. Risk factors and preventive interventions for Alzheimer disease: state of the science. Arch Neurol. 2011 Sep;68(9):1185-90. Epub 2011 May 9. Review.
Chen R., Association of environmental tobacco smoke with dementia and Alzheimer's disease among never smokers. Alzheimers Dement. 2011 Dec 23. [Epub ahead of print]
O'Luanaigh C, O'Connell H, Chin AV, Hamilton F, Coen R, Walsh C, Walsh JB, Caokley D, Cunningham C, Lawlor BA. Loneliness and cognition in older people: The Dublin Healthy Ageing study. Aging Ment Health. 2011 Nov 30. [Epub ahead of print]