The longer we live, the more likely we are to develop dementia. And, it is the one that tends to terrify us most. Evidence suggests that changing your lifestyle can help to reduce your risk of dementia.
What does the current evidence really tell us about prevention?
1. Watch your body mass index
In general terms, it appears to be healthier to be neither underweight nor obese in middle age.
2. Take regular exercise
The study found that regular exercise (30 minutes walking five times a week, or equivalent) in adult life is the single most important factor in reducing the risk.
3. Intervene early
The process of dementia may start 15-20 years before clinical symptoms become apparent. Better cognitive functioning was seen in the control group that was offered nutritional advice, exercise, cognitive training and social activity, as well as management of vascular risk factors.
4. Look after your heart
Vascular conditions should be managed “as well as possible” to reduce the risk of dementia, and people should be encouraged to keep taking their blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol medication. Smokers have a 45% higher risk of developing all types of dementia than non-smokers. And the more you smoke, the greater the risk. But if you quit, your risk starts to return to that of a non-smoker as soon as you give up.
5. Get an education while young
The more years of formal education you have in your teens and early 20s, the less likely you are to develop detectable dementia, says Brown. It makes sense that even if your rate of decline is the same as a less well educated peer, you will still function better for longer if your cognitive function has been primed from a young age.
6. Eat a healthy, balanced diet
It seems that a Mediterranean diet, high in cereals, fruit, fish and veg, may lower the risk of dementia and vascular risk factors, though it is likely that a range of foods rather than one particular superfood is responsible. A plate of fish, olives and tomatoes is probably better than a tub of vitamins.
Limit your alcohol intake
In a complex world, some things are clear; getting plastered is bad for the brain. High alcohol intake above recommended limits is one of the lifestyle factors associated with an increased risk of dementia.
