DEMENTIA isn’t inevitable. The human brain can stay shrill well past 100 years of life. Yes, receiving older decelerates us down and brain parts are associated with memory and administrative function shrink, myelin sheaths around our neurons start to erode, slowing down signalling, and arteries narrow retreating blood supply. But those things mainly will affect the speed, when healthy and an older people are given an extra time to perform cognitive tasks, the results are on par with younger folks.
The number of people affected by dementia may be increasing, but most experts say that’s generally because more of us are living longer. Between the late 1980s and 2011, the proportion of people over 65 with dementia actually fallen by 20% in England and Wales. Between 2000 and 2012, dementia rates in that age group dropped by 24% in the US. Similar declines have been reported in other developed countries. There are two driving factors, says Kenneth Lange at the Michigan Centre on the Demography of Aging, who tracked the US trend: a rise in educational attainment and better control of cardiovascular issues. After the Second World War, there was an upturn in schooling that averaged out to about an extra year of education across the US population.
Exploration will suggest that people with more education, or those who have done things like acquire a new language or learn to play a musical instrument, may be resilient to signs of dementia. It doesn’t mean that they will escape the ravages of vascular dementia or plaques of Alzheimer’s, but they may handle better with the brain damage. “By stimulating your brain throughout education, you can generate a more fitness to the brain, that can recompense for difficulties that you have as your age”. Inflated cognitive reserve is thought to help in two ways: one is boosting the brain’s ability to work around damaged areas, and the second one is to promote more efficient processing of the brain. .
In disparity, dementia alters the cognitive playing field. As well as affecting memory, it causes issues with understanding or expressing oneself in language, problems with sensory perception, and disturbances in executive function that can undermine day-to-day independence. Aging are eager to find ways to maintain brain health and remain independent as long as possible. It's becoming clearer that simple lifestyle changes "can cause new areas of your brain to be used to prolong brain health and maybe stave off dementia,"
5 ways to keep Brain sharp and fight for dementia
· Keep moving: Increased physical exercise was one of only three actions that provide "encouraging, although inconclusive" and it will benefits in preventing cognitive decline and dementia.
· Eat well: Healthy food choices may reduce inflammation, which is linked to cognitive decline, and improve blood flow, which affects brain health.
· Learn something new: One of the most important and newest research findings is that people with more formal education have a lower incidence of Alzheimer's or dementia,"
· Get a social life: Socializing with others keeps the brain healthy and may ward off dementia by strengthening connections between neurons. Invest in social activities important to you, such as joining a band or volunteering at the library.
· Catch some Sleep: Sleeping less than seven or eight hours a night is linked to cognitive decline, memory loss and possibly Alzheimer's.
