How to Avoid Dementia
A new study has determined the individual percentages by which a variety of lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of dementia and suggests that these interventions – in the absence of a new treatment for the mind-robbing disease – are likely to have the greatest impact on reducing dementia levels in the future.
The study assessed previously identified risk factors such as depression, diet, alcohol consumption, educational level and vascular factors, which include heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and high cholesterol.
Results found that three changes together – eliminating depression, diabetes and increasing fruit & vegetable consumption – reduced dementia risk by a full 21%.
- Depression alone accounted for a 10% risk.
- Higher education was linked to an 18% lower risk.
- Genetic tendency towards dementia accounts for 7% of cases.
This study was released August 5, 2010 and will be published in a future issue of the British Medical Journal. The journal already has made the full-text version of this important study available to the public, online at http://bit.ly/c3p7KL.
