Dementia! - Valuable Information

Most of us start worrying about dementia after retirement - and that may be too little, too late. Experts say that if you really want to ward off dementia, you need to start taking care of your brain in your 30s and 40s - or even earlier.

"More and more research is suggesting that lifestyle is very important to your brain's health," says Dr. Paul Nussbaum, a neuro-psychologist and an adjunct associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "If you want to live a long, healthy life, then many of us need to start as early as we can."

So what can you do to beef up your brain - and possibly ward off dementia? Nussbaum, who recently gave a speech on the topic for the Winter Park (Fla.) Health Foundation, offers 20 tips that may help.
1.
Join clubs or organizations that need volunteers. If you start volunteering now, you won't feel lost and unneeded after you retire.


2.
Develop a hobby or two. Hobbies help you develop a robust brain because you're trying something new and complex.



3.
Practise writing with your non-dominant hand several minutes everyday. This will exercise the opposite side of your brain and fire up those neurons.



4.
Take dance lessons. In a study of nearly 500 people, dancing was the only regular physical activity associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease. The people who danced three or four times a week showed 76 percent less incidence of dementia than those who danced only once a week or not at all.


5.
Need a hobby? Start gardening. Researchers in New Zealand found that, of 1,000 people, those who gardened regularly were less likely to suffer from dementia! Not only does gardening reduce stress, but gardeners use their brains to plan gardens; they use visual and spatial reasoning to lay out a garden.


6.
Walking daily can reduce the risk of dementia because cardiovascular health is important to maintain blood flow to the brain. Or... buy a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps a day.


7.
Read and write daily. Reading stimulates a wide variety of brain areas that process and store information. Likewise, writing (not copying) stimulates many areas of the brain as well.


8.
Start knitting. Using both hands works both sides of your brain. And it's a stress reducer.


9.
Learn a new language. Whether it's a foreign language or sign language,you are working your brain by making it go back and forth between one language and the other. A researcher in England found that being bilingual seemed to delay symptoms of Alzheimer's disease for four years. And some research suggests that the earlier a child learns sign language, the higher his IQ - and people with high IQs are less likely to have dementia. So start them early.


10.
Play board games such as Scrabble and Monopoly. Not only are you taxing your brain, you're socializing too. Playing solo games, such as solitaire or online computer brain games can be helpful, but Nussbaum prefers games that encourage you to socialize too.


11.
Take classes throughout your lifetime. Learning produces structural and chemical changes in the brain, and education appears to help people live longer. Brain researchers have found that people with advanced degrees live longer - and if they do have Alzheimer's, it often becomes apparent only in the very later stages of the disease.



12.
Listen to classical music. A growing volume of research suggests that music may hard wire the brain, building links between the two hemispheres. Any kind of music may work, but there's some research thatshows positive effects for classical music, though researchers don't understand why.



13.
Learn a musical instrument. It may be harder than it was when you were a kid, but you'll be developing a dormant part of your brain.



14.
Travel. When you travel (whether it's to a distant vacation spot or on a different route across town), you're forcing your brain to navigate a new and complex environment. A study of London taxi drivers found experienced drivers had larger brains because they have to store lots of information about locations and how to navigate there.

15.
Pray. Daily prayer appears to help your immune system. And people who attend a formal worship service regularly live longer and report happier, healthier lives.



16.
Learn to meditate. It's important for your brain that you learn to shut outthe stresses of everyday life.


17.
Get enough sleep. Studies have shown a link between interrupted sleep and dementia.

18.
Eat more foods containing Omega-3 fatty acids: Salmon, sardines, tuna, ocean trout, mackerel or herring, plus walnuts (which are higher in omega 3s than salmon) and flaxseed. Flaxseed oil, cod liver oil and walnut oil are good sources too.


19.
Eat more fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants in fruits and vegetables mop up some of the damage caused by free radicals, one of the leading killers of brain cells.


20.
Eat at least one meal a day with family and friends. You'll slow down, socialize, and research shows you'll eat healthier food than if you ate alone or on the go.


DOING ALL 20 THINGS LISTED ABOVE AND YOU WILL NOT FIND ENOUGH TIME IN YOUR LIFE TO FIT IN DEMENTIA AS WELL: IN OTHER WORDS, "CONTINUE TO DO ALL THE THINGS THAT YOU ALREADY DO AND YOU WILL HAVE COVERED MOST OF THE THINGS LISTED!" 
 

Four Tablespoons of This "Brain Food" May Prevent Alzheimer's

Dr. Mary Newport documents a case study for the treatment of Alzheimer's.

Dr. Mary Newport writes about ketone bodies, an alternative fuel for your brain which your body makes when digesting coconut oil, and how coconut oil may offer profound benefits in the fight against Alzheimer's disease.

If her theory is accurate, this could be one of the greatest natural health discoveries in a long time. Backing up her claims is the remarkable recovery of her own husband.
Bear in mind however that contrary to Dr. Newport, I personally do NOT support using drugs to treat Alzheimer's, and based on his condition believe enrolling him in a vaccine study is completely contraindicated and ill advised.

That said, I believe Dr. Newport may have stumbled upon a powerful natural strategy to help prevent and treat Alzheimer's, and that's what I want to address here.

"Brain Starvation" is a Hallmark of Alzheimer's Disease

One of the primary fuels your brain needs is glucose, which is converted into energy.
The mechanism for glucose uptake in your brain has only recently begun to be studied, and what has been learned is that your brain actually manufactures its own insulin to convert glucose in your blood stream into the food it needs to survive.

As you may already know, diabetes is the condition where your body's response to insulin is weakened until your body eventually stops producing the insulin necessary to regulate blood sugar, and your body's ability to regulate (or process) blood sugar into energy becomes essentially broken.

Now, when your brain's production of insulin decreases, your brain literally begins to starve, as it's deprived of the glucose-converted energy it needs to function normally.
This is what happens to Alzheimer's patients -- portions of their brain start to atrophy, or starve, leading to impaired functioning and eventual loss of memory, speech, movement and personality.
In effect, your brain can begin to atrophy from starvation if it becomes insulin resistant and loses its ability to convert glucose into energy.

It is now also known that diabetics have a 65 percent increased risk of also being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and there appears to be a potent link between the two diseases, even though the exact mechanisms have yet to be determined.
It seems quite clear however that both are related to insulin resistance – in your body, and in your brain.

Alternate Brain Food Can Stop Brain Atrophy in its Tracks

Fortunately, your brain is able to run on more than one type of energy supply, and this is where coconut oil enters the picture.

There's another substance that can feed your brain and prevent brain atrophy. It may even restore and renew neuron and nerve function in your brain after damage has set in.
The substance in question is called ketone bodies, or ketoacids.

Ketones are what your body produces when it converts fat (as opposed to glucose) into energy. And a primary source of ketone bodies are the medium chain triglycerides (MCT) found in coconut oil!

Coconut oil contains about 66 percent MCTs.

The benefits of ketone bodies may also extend to a number of other health conditions, according to Dr. Newport:

"Further, this is a potential treatment for Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclero­sis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), drug resistant epilepsy, brittle type I diabetes, and diabetes type II, where there is insulin resistance.

Ketone bodies may help the brain recover after a loss of oxygen in newborns through adults, may help the heart re­cover after an acute attack, and may shrink cancer­ous tumors."

Medium chain triglycerides (MCT) are fats that are not processed by your body in the same manner as long chain triglycerides. Normally, a fat taken into your body must be mixed with bile released from your gallbladder before it can be broken down in your digestive system.
But medium chain triglycerides go directly to your liver, which naturally converts the oil into ketones, bypassing the bile entirely. Your liver then immediately releases the ketones into your bloodstream where they are transported to your brain to be used as fuel.

In fact, ketones appear to be the preferred source of brain food in patients affected by diabetes or Alzheimer's.

"In Alzheimer's disease, the neurons in certain areas of the brain are un­able to take in glucose due to insulin resistance and slowly die off, a process that appears to happen one or more decades before the symptoms become apparent," Dr. Newport states in her article.
"If these cells had access to ketone bod­ies, they could potentially stay alive and continue to function."

The Ketonic Diet – Why Avoiding Grains Also Protects against Neurodegeneration

Another way to increase ketone production in your body is by restricting carbohydrates.
This is what happens when you go on a high fat, high protein, low carbohydrate diet: Your body begins to run on fats instead of carbohydrates, and the name for this is ketosis.

This is also why you don't starve to death when you restrict food for weeks at a time, because your body is able to convert stored fat into ketones that are used as fuel instead of glucose.
Consuming medium chain triglycerides such as coconut oil is a better option, however, because the ketones produced by ketosis are not concentrated in your bloodstream, but are instead mostly excreted in your urine.

MCTs and Alzheimer's Research

The mechanism of this MCT-ketone metabolism appears to be that your body treats MCTs as a carbohydrate and not a fat. This allows the ketone energy to hit your blood stream without the normal insulin spike associated with carbohydrates entering your bloodstream.

So in effect coconut oil is a fat that acts like a carbohydrate when it comes to brain fuel.
Therapeutic levels of MCTs have been studied at 20 grams per day. According to Dr. Newport's calculations, just over two tablespoons of coconut oil (about 35 ml or 7 level teaspoons) would supply you with the equivalent of 20 grams of MCT, which is indicated as either a preventative measure against degenerative neurological diseases, or as a treatment for an already established case.

Remember though that people tolerate coconut oil differently, and you may have to start slowly and build up to these therapeutic levels. My recommendation is to start with one teaspoon, taken with food in the mornings. Gradually add more coconut oil every few days until you are able to tolerate four tablespoons.

Coconut oil is best taken with food, to avoid upsetting your stomach.

You Also Need Dietary B12 for Optimal Brain Health

According to a small Finnish study recently published in the journal Neurology, people who consume foods rich in B12 may also reduce their risk of Alzheimer's in their later years. For each unit increase in the marker of vitamin B12 (holotranscobalamin) the risk of developing Alzheimer's was reduced by 2 percent.

However, I strongly disagree with the dietary advice published by CNN Health on this topic, which included fish and fortified cereals.

Fortified cereals are most definitely NOT a good source of dietary B vitamins. They also have inorganic iron added. This is the worst type of iron to use as a supplement and it will raise already elevated iron in those that don't need it, like most adult men and postmenopausal women.

Elevated iron levels will actually increase your risk of Alzheimer's

Additionally, most fish are today so contaminated, I cannot recommend increasing consumption of fish either. One exception would be sardines, which are high in B12 and small enough to typically be less contaminated, compared to larger fish.

Instead, your ideal dietary sources of B12 vitamins would include:

• Liver from organic calf
• Wild caught salmon
• Organic, grass-fed beef
• Lamb (which are typically grass-fed even if not specified as organic)
• Organic, free-range eggs

Vitamin B12 is present in natural form only in animal sources of food, which is one of the reasons I advise against a strict vegetarian or vegan diet. The few plant foods that are sources of B12 are actually B12 analogs. An analog is a substance that blocks the uptake of true B12, so your body's need for the nutrient actually increases.

There are many well-documented cases of brain abnormalities in strict vegetarians, resulting from vitamin B12 deficiency.

Foods to AVOID to Keep Your Mind Sharp

Meanwhile, besides incorporating ketone therapy (coconut oil), as either a preventative step or as a treatment, there are other steps you can take to help minimize your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease decades from now.

For instance, it's important to know what foods to avoid, in order to protect the health of your brain.

These four foods in particular can be pinpointed as enemies of optimal brain health:

1. Sugars, especially fructose -- Excessive sugar and grain consumption are the driving factors behind insulin resistance, and the strategies that protect your brain are very similar to those for avoiding diabetes.
   
   There is simply no question that insulin resistance is one of the most pervasive influences on brain damage, as it contributes massively to inflammation, which will prematurely degenerate your brain.

2. Ideally, you’ll want to restrict your total fructose consumption to below 25 grams a day. This includes refraining from eating too many fruits, if you normally eat a lot of them. If you consume more than 25 grams a day of fructose you can damage your cells by creating insulin and leptin resistance and raising your uric acid levels.

3. Berries tend to be lower in fructose, and wild blueberries, for example, are also high in anthocyanin and antioxidants, and are well known for being beneficial against Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases.  

4. Grains – Even whole, organic grains will convert to sugar in your body and spike your insulin levels.

Ideally you’ll want to devise a nutritional plan geared to your specific nutritional type to maximize your health benefits, as grain carbs are far more detrimental to some than others. I believe this is essential to everyone’s health, and I’m very pleased to now be able to offer the full online nutritional typing program for free. We’ve previously charged $29 for this test, so please do take advantage of this free offer  

Artificial sweeteners – Aspartame, for example, is an excitotoxin that can literally destroy your brain cells. There are many studies showing the dangers of aspartame. For example, one study published in 2000 found that aspartame shortens the memory response, impairs memory retention and damages hypothalamic neurons in mice.And the results from a 2002 study published in the journal Nature suggest that aspartame may cause mental retardation, although the mechanism by which it does that is still unknown.

Other animal studies have linked aspartame to brain damage and brain tumors, even in low doses. I believe aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are dangerous to your health in so many ways, I even wrote an entire book on this topic called Sweet Deception.



 Soy -- Unfermented soy products are another common food that should be avoided if you want to maintain healthy brain function.

One well-designed epidemiological study linked tofu consumption with exaggerated brain aging. Men who ate tofu at least twice weekly had more cognitive impairment, compared with those who rarely or never ate the soybean curd, and their cognitive test results were about equivalent to what they would have been if they were five years older than their current age. What's more, higher midlife tofu consumption was also associated with low brain weight. Shrinkage does occur naturally with age, but for the men who had consumed more tofu showed an exaggeration of the usual patterns you typically see in aging.

 Dr. Kaayla Daniel has written an excellent book, The Whole Soy Story, which covers the health dangers of soy in great depth and I highly recommend it to anyone still under the illusion that soy is a health food.

Additional Guidelines to Prevent Alzheimer's Disease While Combating Diabetes at the Same Time

Clearly, the best-known "treatment" for Alzheimer's disease is prevention, not drugs.
There is no question that insulin resistance is one of the most pervasive influences on brain damage as it contributes massively to inflammation, which will prematurely degenerate your brain -- just as it destroys the rest of your body and contributes to degenerative and chronic diseases of all kinds.

As a general rule for optimal physical and mental health, you'll want to keep your fasting insulin levels below 3.

Interestingly, normalizing your body's insulin and leptin levels will typically help raise your production of brain insulin, which is a good thing.
In addition to the dietary recommendations already discussed above, the following seven guidelines can further help you prevent Alzheimer's disease and keep your mind sharp as you age:

1. Optimize your vitamin D levels through safe sun exposure, a safe tanning bed and/or vitamin D3 supplements.
2. Take a high-quality animal-based omega-3 fat. I recommend consuming high quality krill oil to meet the optimal amount of omega-3 fats needed to achieve good health and fight Alzheimer's.  I recently did an interview with Dr. Rudi Moerck, an industry expert, which goes into great detail as to why I am strongly recommending krill. 
3. Exercise. You probably know that exercise is good for your cardiovascular system, but studies have found that exercise can also protect your brain, thereby warding off Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.
   
   According to one study, the odds of developing Alzheimer's were nearly quadrupled in people who were less active during their leisure time, between the ages of 20 and 60, compared with their peers.

1. Similar to a healthy diet, regular physical activity is one of those actions that can significantly improve many aspects of your physical and emotional health. For the elderly, simple activities such as walking and lightweight training would likely provide benefits. For those who are younger, more strenuous exercise will radically improve the benefits.
   
2. Avoid and remove mercury from your body. Even trace amounts of mercury can cause the type of damage to nerves that is characteristic of the damage found in Alzheimer's disease.
   
   Dental amalgam fillings are one of the major sources of mercury, however you should be healthy prior to having them removed. Once you have adjusted to your improved diet, you can follow my mercury detox protocol and then find a biological dentist to have your amalgams removed.
   Other sources of mercury include most seafood, thimerosal-containing vaccinations and flu shots, which contain both mercury and aluminum.

1. Avoid aluminum. Aluminum has been widely associated with Alzheimer's disease. Your main sources of exposure are likely through drinking water and antiperspirants.
   
   Aluminum cookware may also be a source of exposure. Although aluminum pots are probably less problematic than the sources mentioned above, I personally would not use aluminum cookware.
   
2. Challenge your mind. Mental stimulation, such as traveling, learning to play an instrument or doing crossword puzzles, is associated with a decreased risk of Alzheimer's. Researchers suspect that mental challenge helps to build up your brain, making it less susceptible to the lesions associated with Alzheimer's disease.
3. Avoid anticholinergic drugs. Drugs that block acetylcholine, a nervous system neurotransmitter, have been shown to increase your risk of dementia. These drugs include certain night-time pain relievers, antihistamines, sleep aids, certain antidepressants, medications to control incontinence, and certain narcotic pain relievers.
   
   A recent study found that those who took one drug classified as a 'definite anticholinergics' had a four times higher incidence of cognitive impairment. Regularly taking two of these drugs further increased the risk of cognitive impairment.
   

Final Thoughts on Combating Alzheimer's with Coconut Oil

The damage done to your brain from the wrong foods and from unbalanced insulin and leptin levels actually begins decades before you show any of the telltale signs of Alzheimer's. So it's vitally important to make healthy decisions now, before you unwittingly do decades of damage to your brain and nerves that you may not be able to reverse.

If you undertake a coconut oil or MCTs therapy protocol, be sure to start slow with the oil, and always take it with food to minimize stomach discomfort. If it takes you a few weeks to work up to the four tablespoons of coconut oil required for a therapeutic dose, that's normal. Not everyone can tolerate so much coconut oil in a single dose right from the start.

The coconut oil or MCTs should also be taken in the morning, as it takes a minimum of three hours for the oil to convert to ketones and reach your brain. Repeating the dose of four tablespoons of coconut oil twice a day may be beneficial for those already suffering from pre-Alzheimer's or Alzheimer's conditions.

With 15 million cases of Alzheimer's predicted in the United States by the year 2050, you can help ensure you are not one of the victims of this tragic disease by taking steps now to take charge of your health.

Alzheimer’s, Snoring and Sleep Apnea Connection

Alzheimer’s is most often considered an incurable and
unavoidable disease. Many of us have helplessly watched loved
ones experience this painful condition, steadily degenerating the
person’s functionality and personality.

Recent studies have, however, connected Alzheimer’s to a couple
of very unexpected co-conspirators, snoring and sleep apnea. And
by drawing some common sense conclusions, researchers have come
up with a method that may help EVERY Alzheimer’s patient to not
only stop this horrible disease but maybe also reverse it to some
level.

What’s even more important, this gives hope that Alzheimer’s
may be totally prevented from developing in the first place.

This full-featured article is especially important if you or
someone close to you snores. To read more and make your comment,
please CLICK HERE

The Difficult Consequences Of Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is a serious neurological disorder which unfortunately can impact many parts of the brain and considerably affects our lives. It results in changes to a person's memory, thoughts, and behaviors.
It is not yet altogether known why people develop Alzheimer's disease. It is believed that genetics plays an important role in the likelihood of someone developing the disease but today we know that nutrition, physical activity and brain activity can have a big impact on the likelihood to develop Alzheimer's at a later stage.
In any case the manner is which Alzheimer's disease affects the brain comes in part from the way in which electrical signals travels throughout the neural network. It also affects the function of the neurotransmitters and many other brain functions.

Over time the disease also annihilate many areas of the brain. It can significantly shrink the size of the brain and impacts the ability of the brain to properly function. The shrinkage of the brain is particularly severe on the hippocampus which is the area of the brain which affects memory. This is a key reason why many Alzheimer's disease patients suffer from a significant loss of memory.

Other areas of the brain which can be impacted include the cortex which is the section which controls thinking, organizing and rational thought.

In the early stages of the disease, patients usually have trouble remembering things. As the disease progresses, they lose more of their ability to remember even simple things, places and people. They will tend to forget things which were second nature over most of their lifetime. Eventually they will completely forget close family and friends as well as lose the ability to perform even simple personal tasks like brushing their teeth, eating or maintaining their personal hygiene.

The disease affects a person's ability to speak or comprehend the simplest of instructions. It has been found that the brain of people who suffer from AD also have formations of plaque present which impacts the ability of the brain cells to function properly. Over time it kills these cells which cause the brain to shrink and lose much of its function.

There are several diagnostic tests available which can help determine if a person is suffering from the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. If this is so, there are a number of different treatments which can be applied to help slow down the progression of this disease.

Still, there is not yet a complete cure. However a number of drug treatments have been shown to help slow the progression and bring back some mental acuity.

We believe that in today's Alzheimer's day what is very important is prevention. By having and living a healthier life, one can reduce its chance to get the disease at a later stage of life. When we know the terrible consequences this diseases has on individuals and their respective family, it is vital to take the necessary steps to prevent the disease for happening.

Nathanael Eisenberg is the CEO of CogniFit, a company that develops software which measure and train cognitive abilities. We help people discover new insights about themselves and decide what to improve in their life.

The rapid growth of scientific knowledge around the brain creates new opportunities to help tackle some of the major challenges of the early part of the 21st century. Nathanael's goal is to participate in the search of some of these additional solutions.

Vascular Dementia - Signs, Symptoms, Prevention, and Treatment

Vascular dementia is one of the most common forms of dementia, ranking only second to Alzheimer’s disease. Vascular dementia is caused by chronic, reduced blood flow to the brain—usually as the result of a stroke or series of strokes. In many cases, the strokes are so small that you may not notice any symptoms. These are known as “silent strokes.” But over time, the damage adds up, leading to memory loss, confusion, and other signs of dementia.

Vascular dementia represents a challenge for those affected by it and their caretakers. But with an understanding of the condition, and a willingness to make important lifestyle changes, it may be possible to prevent further blockages and compensate for brain damage that has already occurred.

What is vascular dementia?

Vascular dementia refers to a subtle, progressive decline in memory and cognitive functioning. It occurs when the blood supply carrying oxygen and nutrients to the brain is interrupted by a blocked or diseased vascular system. If blood supply is blocked for longer than a few seconds, brain cells can die, causing damage to the cortex of the brain—the area associated with learning, memory, and language.

Depending on the person, and the severity of the stroke or strokes, vascular dementia may come on gradually or suddenly. Currently, there is no known cure, but the good news is that making certain lifestyle changes and using practical strategies may help prevent strokes, compensate for cognitive loses, and slow its development.
  
Signs and symptoms of vascular dementia 

Vascular dementia affects different people in different ways and the speed of the progression varies from person to person. Some symptoms may be similar to those of other types of dementia and usually reflect increasing difficulty to perform everyday activities like eating, dressing, or shopping. 

Behavioral and physical symptoms can come on dramatically or very gradually, although it appears that a prolonged period of TIAs—the mini-strokes discussed above—leads to a gradual decline in memory, whereas a bigger stroke can produce profound symptoms immediately. Regardless of the rate of appearance, vascular dementia typically progresses in a stepwise fashion, where lapses in memory and reasoning abilities are followed by periods of stability, only to give way to further decline.

Causes of vascular dementia

Stroke, small vessel disease, or a mixture of the two can cause vascular dementia. Most commonly there is a blockage of small blood vessels somewhere in the vast system of arteries that feeds the brain and enters through the base of the skull. Blockages may be caused by plaque build up on the inside of the artery wall, or by blood clots which have broken loose and clogged a tributary further downstream. Clots can form as a result of abnormal heart rhythms, or other heart abnormalities. Also, a weak patch on an artery wall can balloon outward and form an aneurysm, which can burst and deprive the brain cells of oxygen.
It is estimated that about 50 percent of the cases of vascular dementia result from hypertension, or high blood pressure. Less common causes of vascular dementia are associated with autoimmune inflammatory diseases of the arteries such as lupus and temporal arteritis, which are treatable with drugs that suppress the immune system.

Vascular dementia prevention and treatment

There is not yet a known cure for vascular dementia, so prevention is important. The best way to prevent vascular dementia is to lower the risk of stroke. This means getting high blood pressure under control, avoiding cigarettes, and controlling cholesterol levels and diabetes.
But even if you or a loved one have already been diagnosed with vascular dementia, it’s not too late to do anything about it. If you treat the risk factors that led to vascular dementia, you may be able to slow the progression of the disease and possibly reverse some of the symptoms. The most important thing is minimizing your risk of having another stroke and making the dementia worse.
The FDA has not, as yet, approved any medications for the treatment of vascular dementia. However, a number of medications used to treat the cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease appear to work for vascular dementia, too.

 

Dementia

The word 'Dementia' comes from the Latin 'de' meaning 'apart' and 'men'
from the genitive mentis meaning 'mind'. Dementia is the progressive deterioration in cognitive function-the ability to process thought (intelligence). Progressive means the symptoms will gradually get worse.     

Most of us start worrying about dementia after retirement - and that may be too little, too late. Experts say that if you really want to ward off dementia, you need to start taking care of your brain in your 30s and 40s - or even earlier.
  "More and more research is suggesting that lifestyle is very important to your brain's health," says Dr. Paul Nussbaum, a neuropsychologist and an adjunct associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "If you want to live a long, healthy life, then many of us need to start as early as we can." 
  So what can you do to beef up your brain - and possibly ward off dementia?  Nussbaum, who recently gave a speech on the topic for the Winter Park (Fla.) Health Foundation, offers 20 tips that may help. 

1)     Join clubs or organizations that need volunteers.  If you start volunteering now, you won't feel lost and unneeded after you retire. 

2)      Develop a hobby or two.  Hobbies help you develop a robust brain because you're trying something new and complex. 

3) Practise writing with your non-dominant hand several minutes everyday.  This will exercise the opposite side of your brain and fire up those neurons.

 4) Take dance lessons. In a study of nearly 500 people, dancing was the only regular physical activity associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.  The people who danced three or four times a week showed 76 percent less incidence of dementia than those who danced only once a week or not at all.


5) Need a hobby? Start gardening.  Researchers in New Zealand found that, of 1,000 people, those who gardened regularly were less likely to suffer from dementia!  Not only does gardening reduce stress, but gardeners use their brains to plan gardens; they use visual and spatial reasoning to lay out a garden.


6) Walking daily can reduce the risk of dementia because cardiovascular health is important to maintain blood flow to the brain.  or...Buy a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps a day.


 7) Read and write daily. Reading stimulates a wide variety of brain areas that process and store information.  Likewise, writing (not copying) stimulates many areas of the brain as well.


8) Start knitting. Using both hands works both sides of your brain.  And it's a stress reducer.


9) Learn a new language. Whether it's a foreign language or sign language,you are working your brain by making it go back and forth between one language and the other.  A researcher in England found that being bilingual seemed to delay symptoms of Alzheimer's disease for four years.  And some research suggests that the earlier a child learns sign language, the higher his IQ - and people with high IQs are less likely to have dementia. So start them early.


10) Play board games such as Scrabble and Monopoly.  Not only are you taxing your brain, you're socializing too.  Playing solo games, such as solitaire or online computer brain games can be helpful, but Nussbaum prefers games that encourage you to socialize too. 


11) Take classes throughout your lifetime.  Learning produces structural and chemical changes in the brain, and education appears to help people live longer.  Brain researchers have found that people with advanced degrees live longer - and if they do have Alzheimer's, it often becomes apparent only in the very later stages of the disease.


12) Listen to classical music.  A growing volume of research suggests that music may hard wire the brain, building links between the two hemispheres. Any kind of music may work, but there's some research that shows positive effects for classical music, though researchers don't understand why


13) Learn a musical instrument. It may be harder than it was when you were a kid, but you'll be developing a dormant part of your brain.


14) Travel. When you travel (whether it's to a distant vacation spot or on a different route across town), you're forcing your brain to navigate a new and complex environment.  A study of London taxi drivers found experienced drivers had larger brains because they have to store lots of information about locations and how to navigate there.


15) Pray. Daily prayer appears to help your immune system.  And people who attend a formal worship service regularly live longer and report happier, healthier lives.


16) Learn to meditate.  It's important for your brain that you learn to shut out the stresses of everyday life. 


17) Get enough sleep. Studies have shown a link between interrupted sleep and dementia.


18) Eat more foods containing Omega-3 fatty acids: Salmon, sardines, tuna, ocean trout, mackerel or herring, plus walnuts (which are higher in omega 3s than salmon) and flaxseed. Flaxseed oil, cod liver oil and walnut oil are good sources too.


19) Eat more fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants in fruits and vegetables mop up some of the damage caused by free radicals, one of the leading killers of brain cells.        

How To Ward Off Dementia

Most of us start worrying about dementia after retirement - and that may be too little, too late. Experts say that if you really want to ward off dementia, you need to start taking care of your brain in your 30s and 40s - or even earlier.


"More and more research is suggesting that lifestyle is very important to your brain's health," says Dr. Paul Nussbaum, a neuropsychologist and an a djunct associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "If you want to live a long, healthy life, then many of us need to start as early as we can."


So what can you do to beef up your brain - and possibly ward off dementia? Nussbaum, who recently gave a speech on the topic for the Winter Park ( Fla. ) Health Foundation, offers 20 tips that may help.


1) Join clubs or organizations that need volunteers. If you start volunteering now, you won't feel lost and unneeded after you retire.


2) Develop a hobby or two. Hobbies help you develop a robust brain because you're trying something new and complex.


3) Practise writing with your non-dominant hand several minutes everyday. This will exercise the opposite side of your brain and fire up those neurons.


4) Take dance lessons. In a study of nearly 500 people, dancing was the only regular physical activity associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease. The people who danced three or four times a week showed 76 percent less incidence of dementia than those who danced only once a week or not at all.


5) Need a hobby? Start gardening. Researchers in New Zealand found that, of 1,000 people, those who gardened regularly were less likely to suffer from dementia! Not only does gardening reduce stress, but gardeners use their brains to plan gardens; they use visual and spatial reasoning to lay out a garden.


6) Walking daily can reduce the risk of dementia because cardiovascular health is important to maintain blood flow to the brain. or...Buy a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps a day.


7) Read and write daily. Reading stimulates a wide variety of brain areas that process and store information. Likewise, writing (not copying) stimulates many areas of the brain as well.


8) Start knitting. Using both hands works both sides of your brain. And it's a stress reducer.


9) Learn a new language. Whether it's a foreign language or sign language,you are working your brain by making it go back and forth between one language and the other. A researcher in England found that being bilingual seemed to delay symptoms of Alzheimer's disease for four years. And some research suggests that the earlier a child learns sign language, the higher his IQ - and people with high IQs are less likely to have dementia. So start them early.


10) Play board games such as Scrabble and Monopoly. Not only are you taxing your brain, you're socializing too. Playing solo games, such as solitaire or online computer brain games can be helpful, but Nussbaum prefers games that encourage you to socialize too.


11) Take classes throughout your lifetime. Learning produces structural and chemical changes in the brain, and education appears to help people live longer. Brain researchers have found that people with advanced degrees live longer - and if they do have Alzheimer's, it often becomes apparent only in the very later stages of the disease.


12) Listen to classical music. A growing volume of research suggests that music may hard wire the brain, building links between the two hemispheres. Any kind of music may work, but there's some research that shows positive effects for classical music, though researchers don't understand why.


13) Learn a musical instrument. It may be harder than it was when you were a kid, but you'll be developing a dormant part of your brain.


14) Travel. When you travel (whether it's to a distant vacation spot or on a different route across town), you're forcing your brain to navigate a new and complex environment. A study of London taxi drivers found experienced drivers had larger brains because they have to store lots of information about locations and how to navigate there.


15) Pray. Daily prayer appears to help your immune system. And people who attend a formal worship service regularly live longer and report happier, healthier lives.


16) Learn to meditate. It's important for your brain that you learn to shut out the stresses of everyday life.


17) Get enough sleep. Studies have shown a link between interrupted sleep and dementia.


18) Eat more foods containing Omega-3 fatty acids: Salmon, sardines, tuna, ocean trout, mackerel or herring, plus walnuts (which are higher in omega 3s than salmon) and flaxseed. Flaxseed oil, cod liver oil and walnut oil are good sources too.


19) Eat more fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants in fruits and vegetables mop up some of the damage caused by free radicals, one of the leading killers of brain cells.


20) Eat at least one meal a day with family and friends. You'll slow down, socialize, and research shows you'll eat healthier food than if you ate alone or on the go.