6 ways to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s
March 2nd 2011 18:14
We can make predictions about plenty of things, and soon there’ll be one more thing we can predict: your risk for Alzheimer’s disease. A flurry of research is producing new checks for this progressive brain disease.
On one level, that sounds like great news. On another, do you really want to know?
Smart question. Here’s our answer.
In January, a new brain scan that spots telltale buildup of Alzheimer’s plaques — the tangly stuff that gunks up the brain’s workings — made front pages when a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee recommended its approval.
There’s just one “but”: The committee first wants evidence that radiologists agree on how to interpret the scans and that doctors can be trained to read them accurately. The scan is just one of several Alzheimer’s tests; others include an experimental blood check for antibodies associated with degenerative brain disease, and a spinal fluid check for two proteins (beta amyloid and tau) linked to Alzheimer’s.
But because there’s still no cure for this devastating brain disease, many experts are discouraging health consumers from taking early-warning tests that could deliver heartbreaking news.
Not us. Because there ARE things you can do. When an easy, highly accurate check for Alzheimer’s risk hits the market, we think you should consider it if you’re older than 50 and have a family history of mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
If you find you’re at risk, enroll in a research trial. There are plenty of promising treatments being studied. Meanwhile, get into high gear with these powerful, everyday habits proven to cut risk. Start today if you want a healthy brain for yourself (and your loved ones) down the road.
Eat more salads, fish and fruit. Eat less butter, ice cream and red meat. Try to eliminate saturated fat, or get as close as possible. Then increase your intake of brain-pampering healthy fats: omega-3 fatty acids from fish, monounsaturated fats from nuts and olive oil. And get plenty of folate, vitamin B-12 and vitamin E from fresh produce and whole grains.
These steps could cut your risk of Alzheimer’s — or any other cognitive dysfunction later on — by 38 percent. That’s big, because most age-related mental dysfunction is not pure Alzheimer’s.
Fit in 30 minutes of brisk walking daily. No matter what. You can slash your Alzheimer’s risk by an even bigger 50 percent if you make like the adults in a recent Greek study who got just 2.4 hours of moderate activity each week.
Exercise doesn’t just make your hips slinky and your waistline svelte, although that’s nice. It also protects against age-related loss of brain tissue, boosts blood flow, encourages growth of new brain tissue and forms new connections between brain cells. Combine walking with healthy diet changes, and you cut your risk even more: by 60 percent.
Do. Not. Smoke. And do not go near people who do. All tobacco smoke, including secondhand, goes to your head. A two-pack-a-day habit boosts Alzheimer’s risk by 157 percent and increases your odds for blood-flow problems that lead to dementia by a staggering 172 percent. We know it can take several attempts to quit for good; keep at it. You CAN do it. Need help? See our program on RealAge.com. It works.
Drink coffee. Three to five small cups a day (two to three mugs) could lower your risk 67 percent, say Finnish researchers. Nobody’s sure why yet, but it could be because coffee protects against diabetes, a major brain-ager.
Know when to say no. Moderate alcohol intake (up to one drink a day for women, two for men) may help protect your brain as well as your heart. But once you or a loved one has even mild cognitive problems, fill the glass with non-alcoholic wine or near beer. There’s evidence that even a few drinks per week can double dementia risk when there are already signs of trouble.
Pop our favorite supplement. Your brain (surprise) is 60 percent fat, and half of that fat is an omega-3 fatty acid known as DHA, short for docosahexaenoic acid. You don’t have to wrestle with that mouthful; just remember “DHA” when you go shopping.
People with mild memory decline who take 900 milligrams a day for just six months see their brains become as much as three years younger. We both take it, even though there’s not a surefire Alzheimer’s test. Yet.
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