Good for You – Good for Your Brain
What is dementia?
Dementia is the progressive loss of the powers of the brain. The most common kinds are Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. These diseases damage and kill brain cells, so that the brain cannot work as well as it should. This causes problems with memory, communication and thinking and also sometimes with activities such as handling money and dressing.
Why is dementia important?
For individuals, dementia can be devastating. Bit by bit it takes away people’s ability to do everyday things. They lose the ability to make decisions about their lives. They become reliant on others. Families have to provide more and more support and care. There is no cure for dementia, and treatment is limited.
Dementia is also a major public health issue in Scotland. It is the fourth biggest killer after heart disease, strokes and cancer. It is most common among older people, and as life expectancy increases, there will be more older people and so more people with dementia. By 2029 there will be about 109,000 people with dementia in Scotland, up from 64,000 today.
Reducing the risk of dementia
Research shows that many factors affect the risk of developing dementia. Some you can’t do anything about. For example, the biggest risk is getting older – dementia is more common in older people. But there’s a lot you can do which may reduce your risk.
Dementia is something we tend not to think about in our 40s and 50s unless we know someone close to us who has the disease. However, the seeds of dementia may be sown 30-40 years before symptoms show
It’s never too early or too late to take steps now which may reduce the risk of dementia later in life.
What can you do?
There are practical, achievable things you can do now which could reduce your chances of developing dementia or, at the very least, improve your general health and wellbeing.
Research shows that:
- healthy eating
- keeping physically active
- maintaining social networks
- keeping mentally active
Four more tips to reduce your risk of dementia:
Go for regular health checks
What’s good for the heart is good for the brain. Get your blood pressure and cholesterol levels checked at least once every five years and more often if necessary. Early prevention could prevent problems later in life.
Stop smoking
Smoking affects your circulation and may increase dementia risk.
Maintain a healthy body weight
People who are obese are considerably more likely to develop dementia later in life than people with a normal body weight. One study found that obese people had a 74% greater risk while overweight people had a 35% greater risk.
Drink alcohol only in moderation
People who drink moderately may have a lower risk of dementia, but drinking too much can cause alcohol-related dementia, as well as many other problems. If you drink, don’t exceed the weekly maximum of 14 units of alcohol for women and 21 units for men. A unit is, for example, a small glass of wine, a single measure of spirits or half a pint of ordinary strength beer or lager.
Eat healthily
The evidence
A brain-healthy diet is one that reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes, encourages good blood flow to the brain, and is low in fat and cholesterol.
One American study found a 60% reduction in risk of Alzheimer’s disease in people who ate oily fish at least once a week. Fish oils may help to prevent furring or hardening of the arteries and high blood pressure which can raise dementia risk.
A high intake of folate (folic acid) has also been shown in one study to reduce risk of Alzheimer’s disease, by up to 55%. Fortified cereals, green leafy vegetables, orange juice, yeast extract and liver are all good sources of folate.
More research is needed to show exactly how diet relates to dementia risk. But meanwhile, you can’t lose by eating healthily.
What should you aim at?
- Eat more fruit and vegetables - at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day (a portion can be a whole piece of fruit like an apple or orange or 2 large tablespoons of vegetables)
- Eat more fish – at least 2 portions a week. One portion should be oily fish like salmon, mackerel and sardines - fresh, tinned or frozen
- Cut down on salt – no more than 6g a day
- Reduce the amount of fat, saturated fat and sugar in your diet
- Eat more starchy foods like bread, breakfast cereals, rice, pasta and potatoes – wholegrain, wholemeal or brown varieties where possible.
See www.healthyliving.gov.uk or phone 0845 2 78 88 78 for more help with healthy eating.
Take regular physical activity
The evidence
Regular physical activity helps the blood flow to the brain. It also helps reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes, which are all risk factors for dementia.
A recent study showed that people who exercised three or more times a week had a 30% to 40% lower risk of developing dementia compared with those who exercised fewer than three times per week.
It doesn’t have to be strenuous exercise. One study found that older men who walked more than two miles a day had nearly half the risk of dementia compared with those who walked less than quarter of a mile a day.
What should you aim at?
The recommended level of physical activity is to build up at least 30 minutes of moderate activity, most days. Moderate activity is something like brisk walking or strenuous gardening – enough to make you warmer and make your heart beat faster.
Try to build up gradually if you’re not used to being active.
How to achieve it
Small changes to your daily routine can make big differences. Do things that you enjoy.
- Go for walks – no special equipment needed. Join a walking group if you’d rather walk with others
- Walk or cycle instead of taking the car, especially for short journeys
- Gardening, washing the car or cleaning windows all count as activity
- Get off the bus a stop or two earlier
- Take the stairs instead of the lift whenever you can
- Try something new like dancing or swimming or join a gym
See www.healthyliving.gov.uk or phone 0845 2 78 88 78 for more tips on how to increase your physical activity.
Stay mentally active
The evidence
Activities that need mental energy, such as reading, playing board games, doing crosswords or Sudoku puzzles and playing games such as bingo or bridge, may help stave off Alzheimer's disease.
One study found that older people who did crossword puzzles 4 days a week had a 47% lower risk than those who only did a crossword once a week.
We don’t know for sure but it is possible that such activities stimulate more brain cell connections. That might mean that if brain cells are damaged, the brain can keep working well for much longer, and the person may not show symptoms of dementia.
What should you aim at?
Try new things to keep your brain active. Carry on doing things you already enjoy that stimulate your brain.
How to achieve it
- Read magazines, newspapers and books
- Play cards or board games
- Play bingo
- Do crosswords and other puzzles
- Go to day or evening classes
- Learn a musical instrument or a language
Keep up your social networks
The evidence
A recent Swedish study found that having an extensive social network seems to protect against dementia. People with a poor or limited social network had a 60% increase in the risk of dementia.
Activities which combine mental, physical and social stimulation may be even better for reducing the risk of dementia such as day or evening classes, walking with a group or taking part in community groups.
What should you aim at?
Keep involved in the world around you. Try to make sure you do something sociable and enjoyable every day.
How to achieve it
- Keep in regular touch with friends and family
- Go out with friends, family or colleagues
- Get involved in your community
- Volunteer for something that interests you
- Join a club
- Join a walking group or a dance class – it will also increase your physical activity
Health warning
Lowering your risk does not mean you can definitely avoid dementia - but it may reduce your risk considerably.
The research this information is based on looked at large groups of people, not individuals. None of us can be sure that making the suggested changes will reduce our risk of dementia.
Everyone is unique, with different genetics, lifestyle and environment, making it hard for researchers to look at any factor in isolation. There may be other influences we don’t yet know about. Also, because dementia may start to develop years before symptoms show, some of the effects observed in studies could be the result of developing dementia rather than the cause.
It’s like smoking and lung cancer; not everyone who smokes gets lung cancer while some people who don’t smoke do get it. But we know that smokers have a higher risk. In the same way, you can’t guarantee you won’t get dementia – but you can reduce your risk.
We are pleased to have the support of the following organisations in developing our risk reduction campaign:
Age Concern Scotland
Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland
Help the Aged
NHS Health Scotland
Scottish Executive National Programme for Improving Mental Health and Wellbeing
Scottish Pensioners Forum
To order this information in leaflet format, call 0845 456 7739 (24-hour Answerphone)
For more information visit www.goodforyourbrain.org
Alzheimer Scotland has also produced a booklet "Good for You - Good for Your Brain: the evidence on risk reduction and dementia". This is not an academic text. It is written to be accessible for anyone who would like to know more about the current state of knowledge about dementia and risk. It will be useful to people who would like to consider improving their own lifestyle to try to reduce their dementia risk, and to health professionals who advise them.
If you want to know more about dementia, caring or risk reduction, please phone the 24-hour Dementia Helpline on 0808 808 3000.
To view the leaflet "Good for You - Good for Your Brain" in portable document format (pdf) click on the link below:
Good for You - Good for Your Brain (pdf, 185kb, 8 pages)
Freephone 0808 808 3000