A combination of healthy lifestyle choices, such as eating right, exercising regularly, playing cards and socializing at least twice a week, may help slow the rate of memory decline and reduce the risk of dementia, he suggests. a decade-long study.
Memory is a fundamental function of daily life that continually declines as people age, affecting quality of life and productivity and increasing the risk of dementia.
Evidence from previous research has been insufficient to assess the effect of a healthy lifestyle on memory trajectory, but now a study suggests that the combination of multiple healthy lifestyle choices (the more the merrier) is related to reducing the rate of memory deterioration.
“A combination of positive healthy behaviors is associated with a slower rate of memory decline in cognitively normal older adults,” researchers from the National Center for Neurological Disorders in Beijing, China, wrote in the BMJ.
Practicing multiple healthy lifestyles together “was associated with a lower likelihood of progression to mild cognitive impairment and dementia,” they added.
The researchers looked at 29,000 adults over the age of 60 with normal cognitive function who were part of the China Study of Cognition and Aging.
At the start of the study in 2009, memory function was measured by tests and people were tested for the APOE gene, which is the strongest risk factor gene for Alzheimer’s disease. The subjects were then monitored for 10 years with periodic assessments.
A healthy lifestyle score was calculated that combines six factors: a healthy diet; regular exercise; active social contact; cognitive activity; non-smoking; and not drink alcohol.
Based on their score, which ranges from zero to six, participants were categorized into lifestyle groups: favorable (four to six healthy factors), average (two to three healthy factors), or unfavorable (0 to 1 healthy factors). and APOE. carrier and non-carrier groups.
A healthy diet was considered to consume the recommended intake of at least seven of the 12 food groups: fruits, vegetables, fish, meat, dairy, salt, oil, eggs, cereals, legumes, nuts, and tea.
Writing, reading, playing cards or other games at least twice a week was the second area of healthy behavior.
Other areas included not drinking alcohol, exercising for more than 150 minutes a week at moderate intensity or more than 75 at vigorous intensity, and having never smoked or been a former smoker.
Social contact at least twice a week was the sixth healthy behavior, including activities like visiting family and friends, attending gatherings or going to parties.
After accounting for factors that likely affected the results, the researchers found that each individual healthy behavior was associated with slower-than-average memory decline over 10 years.
A healthy diet had the strongest effect in slowing memory decline, followed by cognitive activity and then physical exercise.
People with the APOE gene who led overall healthy lives also experienced a slower rate of memory decline than those with APOE who were the least healthy.
Overall, people with four to six healthy behaviors or two to three were nearly 90% and nearly 30% less likely, respectively, to develop dementia or mild cognitive impairment compared with those with less health, the BMJ reported. .
Dr Susan Mitchell, head of policy at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “This is a well-conducted study, following people over a long period of time, and adds to the substantial evidence that a healthy lifestyle May help support memory and thinking skills as we age.
“Very few of us know that there are steps we can all take to reduce our chances of dementia in later life.”
This article was modified on January 26, 2023 to include the words “recommended intake of” in relation to eating at least seven of the 12 food groups.
Source: news.google.com