Keeping your marbles – Steps to Prevent Dementia

Steps to Prevent Dementia

What are you doing to prevent dementia? Yes, you can reduce your risk!

An influential report, the Lancet Commission Report of Dementia Prevention,  updated in 2024, details 14 risk-reducing steps. I have 3 steps to add to that list.

Why bother?

Dementia is a big problem that you don’t want to get:

• It affects a large number of people, and it is devastating. Over age 65, there are 1 in 14 people with dementia, and for over 80’s it rises to 1 in 6. 
• Women are twice as likely to suffer.
• Dementia is currently the most important contributor to death in the United Kingdom, ahead of heart disease and stroke.

What do you need to do?

Tackle the problems: these 17 risk factors are all modifiable and allow you to reduce your risk of dementia by at least 50%, and at the minimum, delay the onset. Worth doing, don't you think? Addressing some personal weaknesses, keeping slim and active with all your health issues under optimum control will make the difference.

 

The risk factors fall into 5 groups, 4 you can work on ie poisons, social isolation, lifestyle medical issues, major medical metabolic problems, and the public health issues that are less controllable. The additional steps are taking HRT/TRT, perfect oral hygiene and shingles control.

Diversity 30

Diversity 30: Summary

In this article, I discuss the critical role of dietary diversity in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Research shows that a varied diet, including a wide range of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats, significantly contributes to better health outcomes. I emphasize the need to aim for 30 different varieties of plant-based foods each week rather than just five a day. I also recommend incorporating a mix of seeds and nuts to enhance nutrient intake. Please take action to diversify your diet for better health!

What makes a healthy diet?

Diversity in your diet does. Dietary research shows that best health results come from diets that include a wide variety of vegetables, fruits such as berries and apples, whole grains and pulses. Some oily fish is beneficial and animal protein should be moderate.

The evidence

A recent report of 30 years of follow-up in two USA studies: the USA Nurse’s Health Study and Health Professionals Follow Up study 1 , They found that 9,771 (9.3%) of 105,015 participants [66% women], studied from early 50’s onwards had an ideal diet and they achieved ‘healthy aging’, compared with those whose diet was poor. The good diet doubled their chance of living to 75 without chronic disease or dementia.

So far so good – how do you do this?

Blood Pressure Part 1 - Don’t blow your top

Blood Pressure - Know the risk and check at home

What is your blood pressure today – Yes, what is it right now? Well you don’t know, how could you… unless you measured it today or let’s say within the last 7-10 days.

This is really important: you can only know if you are in trouble if you measure your blood pressure [BP] and find it raised. This is why they call BP ‘the silent killer’. In other words, you get life threatening illness that could have been prevented if only you knew your BP was dangerously raised.

In one recent US study of 7328 individuals 54% had BP above the safe zone, half of those were completely unaware of their problem [1].

Actually 8/10 of the hypertensives had ‘uncontrolled’ BP ie a level that is seriously damaging. Looking at those 8 - there were 5 out of 10 uncontrolled because they didn’t check their BP and had no idea they were ill and 3 out of 10 because they were inadequately treated or not taking their meds.

Most were in the 50+ range and that is my focus, but 12.5% were under 44 so have your adult children get their pressure checked regularly, too, say once a year.

Why do you need to know?

High BP causes heart attack, stroke, dementia and kidney failure and therefore contributes to early death. Treating the BP reduces the risks and prevents the disease[2]. More importantly treating the BP intensively improves the outcome.[3] [4]

The Dirty Dozen

The 'Dirty Dozen' and EDC's

Cancer causing pesticides, perfumes & preservatives. Cancer prevention? Here is an easy win.

Avoid known chemical cancer-causing dangers: choose your food intake and manage your environment. This is important for you but very much more important for your children and grandchildren because action now can prevent them ever getting certain cancers.

The key take home message is: 

1. Minimize your pesticide exposure.
2. Avoid EDC's [endocrine disrupting chemicals].

Managing Sugar

Sweet enough! Managing the sugars in your diet

You have a 'sweet tooth' and crave sugary things. OK, it's not a weakness, it's genetic ie you can blame it on your parents*. However, sadly the consequences of this are entirely your responsibility. If you are struggling with your weight, then you need a sugar [reduction] strategy, and that is also critically important for a good HealthSpan and Alzheimer's avoidance. A high sugar diet means blood sugar spikes after eating which leads to insulin resistance [lots of metabolic issues] and fat storage. You choose.

Testosterone Replacement for Men

Reasons why you should consider Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT)

What happens to testosterone [T] with age?

First: available ie ‘free’ T declines with age.

Here is data from the European Male Aging Study.[1].

Dementia Prevention

You are aware of the curse of dementia [mainly as Alzheimer’s Disease – AD] either as a risk of ageing or more powerfully because of personal experience of a sufferer.

There IS an inherited ie genetic component related principally to the APOE e4 gene. But lots of people who have the gene don’t get AD. The important information is not whether you have the gene [so don’t rush to get a test] but whether the gene is switched on - this is called gene expression.

Reducing Cardiovascular Risk – Blood pressure

Focus on… Self-Management

A normal blood pressure [BP] is 120/80 such as you would have in your 30’s.

This matters because …

BP is a silent killer; you can’t tell from how you feel whether your BP is normal or dangerously sky-high. Raised BP is part of the metabolic syndrome [insulin resistance + raised BP + abnormal cholesterol pattern + prediabetic change] associated with mid-abdominal weight gain and major cause of cardiovascular risk [heart attack and stroke].

It’s a Bug’s Life: offer love and take care of your microbiome

You have more bacteria about you - on your skin, in your gut and all the other nooks and crannies – than there are actual human cells in your body. More importantly they do stuff that matters. Whether that is for good, or evil depends on which bacteria are in your particular crowd. This matters for the critical aims we have in respect of longevity. The goal in its simplest terms is reduce inflammaging and prevent dementia, mainly Alzheimer’s Disease [AD]. But apart from the relationship between the mouth microbiome and AD the inflammation associated with a bad microbiome in the gut triggers AD, heart disease, atopic conditions such as asthma, eczema and rhinitis, irritable bowel, inflammatory bowel disease and is a contributing cause for obesity.

Ultra-Processed Foods

All Ultra-processed foods are problematic, even plant-based options

It seems so easy, so modern-day! After a busy workday, your ready meal is in and out of the microwave in 7 minutes. Well - that really helps! Unfortunately, speedy food is not always healthy food.

Supernutrition #5: Hormones, Diet & Body Composition

Hormones diet and body composition

The three principal sex hormones, Oestradiol (E), Testosterone (T) and Progesterone (P) all interact with diet, metabolism and body composition. Ghrelin and Leptin moderate intake and insulin determines fat storage. Thyroid function regulates energy metabolism. Anyone with weight problems (too much or too little) may need hormone evaluation and/or treatment. Reduction in output of E & T post menopause or in 60+ men has adverse consequences that you may wish to counter.

How old are you actually?

Well I was born on … 

It sounds like simple arithmetic, but your body is like a motor car, it isn’t the year it was made that matters … but how many miles it has done, how hard it has been driven and if it has been serviced and well maintained! Wear and tear is the critically issue. Let’s call this wear and tear your biological age in distinction to your chronological age – the years since you were born. Ideally your biological age is lower than your age at last birthday i.e. your body’s working parts are well maintained. 

How to MAXIMISE your healthspan and have a Diamond Life

Your Diamond Life

Not in the sense being rich materially, but rich in good 'quality of life' years. So your HealthSpan is the good years, your LifeSpan the total including those bad end-of-life years you have seen others have.

Want help you to limit the effects of ageing and maximise your HealthSpan?