Demented Thursday: Taking Control

I get a lot of emails and messages from a lot of readers who share that they fear Alzheimer's.  Some even say they fear it worse than cancer.  Lately, I'm finding I fear them both equally.  I also consider the silver lining of Alzheimer's disease for me is knowing there is a risk for it....um just look at my grandma!  If she's not an indicator then I cannot tell you what an indicator is!

So many people ask me:  How can I prevent it?

I'm not a doctor or PhD in the field.  But I do tend to have a magnet towards researching the disease and possible assistance in preventing an early onset.  One thing I want to stress is you really cannot "prevent" this disease (no matter how many times you read War & Peace or the Bible or well...anything).  This isn't chicken pox where you can get an inoculation.  

Alzheimer's Disease is a disease that shows genetic and age link.  Most families can say something like great grandma had it and then grandma has it now.  Or great uncle developed it and now his sister is battling it.  It is also recognized that by your 80's you have a high risk of a dementia diagnosis on that medical chart.  These are factors that we cannot just simply change - its hard to rearrange those genes and I don't think anyone needs to toy with their birthdays!

Now that you are depressed allow me to shine a little light on the sadness.

We can control our lifestyles and by doing so we may be able to prevent the early onset of Alzheimer's disease.  Here's a look at what we can do starting....now!

As we have moved passed the agrarian lifestyle of decades and centuries past we are finding that we are becoming lazy.  Think about it:  do you think great great aunt Gertie was sitting at her laptop playing Candy Crush?  Exactly - she was not!  She was outside gardening, cooking real food in the kitchen, beating the wash on a rock (ok maybe), and doing all kinds of things that today we have a convenience service for.

We are not moving around like we should.  Instead, we are planting our tushes more than we should.  This lifestyle change alone is opening the doors for all kinds of chronic illnesses (remember this is breast cancer awareness month....there's a disease that has really taken off in the past thirty years).

Physical activity is key to good over all health and that includes your brain.

Our diets are also leading disease, including brain disease, into our lives.  How many of us go through a drive thru a few more times than we should a week?  Yep that's bad for your head, heart, and waistline!  With all the additives, stabilizers, and unknowns in fast food and fast prep food we are setting our entire bodies up for disaster.

There are foods they may help with the aging of our minds.  These foods include: fruit, vegetables, fish, whole grain options and healthy oils.  Limiting the red meat can play a vital role in keeping that brain healthy.

Heart healthy is brain healthy.  Our brains need good blood flow and by keeping our hearts clean our arteries to the brain will be clean too.

Have you noticed how much I have mentioned the word "heart"?  The heart and brain are a team if one fails the other will default.  If you have heart disease you are putting your brain at high risk.  Heart disease leads can lead to your brain not getting the nourishment of oxygen it needs.  Take care of your heart and make good decisions about your diet and exercise as a form of insurance on your brain.

There are other lifestyle choices that feed into development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

Are you reading?  This blog, well yes but what about the newspaper?  Magazines?  Books?  An active mind is a healthy mind.  Reading is a perfect exercise to keep those brain cells happy.

Crossword puzzles, sudoku, word scrambles are all great exercises for the brain.  Do not limit yourself to just one style - do many and cross train that brain.  

Taking enrichment classes at the community college or a community center are also fantastic ways to keep your mind sharp.  Any time you are in a learning environment with other people and actively taking part you are doing yourself a huge favor!

The arts are also great ways to keep your mind strong.  Painting, singing, playing the piano, sculpting, etc are very good for the brain.

One huge lifestyle factor that contributes to a sharp mind is simply getting out and socializing.  Maybe its a group your apart of that meets once a week, an exercise class you do not miss, a coffee group you are apart of, or a day out shopping with friends - all of these can help your mind.  Keeping old friends close and making new are extremely vital for a good healthy mind.

Just remember this as I close out the lifestyle section today:  Just doing one or two of these things mentioned isn't going to reduce your risk as much as being proactive and doing them all.  Daily exercise, proper nutrition, keeping your heart healthy, doing the word scramble, reading, being apart of a study group, bellowing out to the radio, and getting out and about are all simple things we can all do every single week of the year.

This is the last Demented Thursday post for a while.  Thank you for your support.