Alzheimer’s disease or AD is a progressive neurodegenerative disease which affects multiple brain functions including memory and deteriorating muscle mass. The main cause of the AD is not conclusive, but there are many risk factors that contribute to the development and progress of the disease. The genes play an important role, and the one known factor is aging. Persons above the age 65 are most often affected.
Certain lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, such as healthy diet, physical activity which will improve brain health, and decrease the risk of many other diseases which have been linked to the AD.
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Exercise
Regular physical activities can decrease the chance of one developing Alzheimer’s disease up to 50%. If a person already started to develop cognitive problems, regular exercise can slow down the process of further deterioration. Stimulating the brain can lead to make new connections as well as maintain the old ones.
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Stress Management
Minimizing the stress, if possible, is the best thing everybody should do. Stress contributes to many health-related issues, such as high blood pressure, heart problems, anxiety and even depression. All of these diseases can increase the risk of Alzheimer’s developing. Chronic stress can negatively affect the memory and the nerve cells in the brain. Try to take control of stressful situations to minimize harmful consequences.
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Mental Stimulation
Mental stimulation is a key factor in preventing the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
People who learn new things throughout the life are less likely to suffer from dementia and AD.
Learning a second language, or even a third later in life, as well as sessions of mental training will improve the cognitive functions. Multitasking activities such as communication, organization, planning, and interaction will show improvements in the cognitive functioning. The results of this brain challenging actions are long-lasting, not only in the period after the training, but years after, reducing the risk of developing the Alzheimer’s disease by half.
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Eat a Healthy Diet
Consuming a healthy diet is a very significant part of every person’s lifestyle in order to maintain a healthy body and a healthy mind.
Foods rich in antioxidants are perfect for reducing the risk of the AD, as well as dark leafy greens, nuts, coffee, berries, beans, whole grains, poultry, fish, red wine and olive oil. Foods that should be avoided are processed cheeses, processed and smoked meats, beer, white foods and microwave popcorn.