A lot of people are so focused when it comes to taking care of their body, and by body that means their physique. They think that by living a healthy lifestyle is actually enough for them, what they don’t realize is that one of the most important parts of the body is being neglected, and that is the brain.
Without the brain functioning well, everything else will literally be useless. Most people tend to forget that they also need to take care of their brain. What most of them don’t understand is that the brain needs to be fed as well and most importantly, it needs to be exercised. A recent study was conducted that showed a way to exercise the brain and would decrease the risk of dementia.
Prevent Dementia By Reading and Playing Games
Based on the most recent study published in the journals of American Medical Association, one of the best ways to prevent and lower the risk of dementia is actually to use the brain more and more by making it function every day. Reading books and also playing games that involve thinking hard are just some of the best ways to do it.
Over 15,000 people in Hong Kong from the ages 65 and up, were actually tracked for about five years. These people didn’t have dementia at the beginning of the study, but when five years was almost up, about 1,300 of them, actually developed dementia.
The people who were tracked got an interview five years prior and they were all asked what kind of intellectual activities they love doing often. The intellectual activists actually include reading books, articles, newspapers and more.
It also invokes playing board games, card games, and other types of games that would require a person to think really hard. They were then assessed from time to time and they found that those who read and play more games often appeared to have lowered their risk of dementia since it was parented up with regular exercise as well as eating the right kind of foods plus enough sleep. Those who didn’t have the same lifestyle ended up having dementia by the end of the study.
Intellectual activities may help fight risks of dementia
The study didn’t exactly elaborate the effect of intellectual exercises, there is still more research that is said to be needed in order to confirm that it could indeed a hundred percent prevent dementia. Some other studies also claim that there is actually no way to completely prevent dementia, but then again, there is no harm done if you try to reduce the risks of developing it by having a healthy lifestyle. Dementia doesn’t just develop because of the way you live, it usually comes with age even if not everyone gets in when they’re older, it is just a possibility. Another thing to consider is the genes, this is not exactly proven but the study says that it is most likely a contributing factor.
Dementia in United States
More and more people are being at risk of dementia because taking care of the brain is not exactly a priority for some people. It, unfortunately, has no cure and one of the most common types of it is the Alzheimer’s disease. According to the most recent statistics gathered by the Alzheimer’s Association, there are now more than 5.7 million people in the United States who are suffering from dementia as of this year.
People who are from the age 65 and up are in the 5 million mark. Experts said that the number of dementia cases is definitely growing every year that someone actually develops it every minute. It is actually the only illness in the United States from the top causes of death, that cannot be prevented, slowed down, and worse cured. Trillions of dollars are actually needed to be able to provide for the needs of the dementia patients every single year. This is because it is a long-term care, making it one of the costliest conditions in the United States and the whole world today.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, dementia is actually not a disease that is specific diagnosed, this is because of the wide range of symptoms it has. Alzheimer’s is known to be the most common type of dementia and the vascular dementia is the second most common one wherein it actually occurs after someone got a stroke.