Think about what you’re feeding your brain.
Minimizing sugar intake is great for your brain health because eating lots of simple carbs spikes blood sugar and leads to inflammation. Eating low-glycemic, low-inflammatory foods helps control type 3 diabetes (aka Alzheimer’s), keeping insulin responses under control and reducing disease-beckoning inflammation.
Watch your waistline.
A recent study authored by David Merrill, M.D., Ph.D., at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), indicates that staying at a healthy weight helps ward off Alzheimer’s.
Stay on the move.
Exercise decreases your chance of getting Alzheimer’s by a whopping 50 percent, according to a 2016 study by the UCLA Medical Center and the University of Pittsburgh. Aim to get really fit. “The best scientific evidence suggests at least 450 minutes of exercise per week,” writes James P. Watson, M.D., via his Agingsciences blog. That means exercising a little more than an hour a day.
Cherish relationships.
A study of 800 men and women aged 75 and older showed that “those who were physically active, mentally active, or more socially engaged had a lower risk of developing dementia.” People who combined all of these activities were found to have the best protection. So stay connected with others: volunteer, make new friends, and participate in community activities.
Never stop learning.
Research shows that keeping active mentally seems to increase vitality and even generates new brain cells. Try playing games, reading, attending lectures, and learning new things.
Give your stomach—and your brain—a break every night.
Empower your brain to “eat up” problematic beta-amyloid proteins by avoiding food for 12 hours between dinner and breakfast. That means skipping late-night snacks and meals—which is good for weight loss and general health, anyway. That time of fasting triggers autophagy, giving the brain a chance to self-clean. Failing to fast can turn off this brain-protecting activity.
Sleep on it.
Seven to eight hours of good sleep each night is extremely valuable. A study on mice published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging found that sleep-deprived mice developed dementia-related problems sooner than others. And researchers believe that poor sleep can trigger pathological processes that accelerate the disease. Sleep is also the time that the glymphatic system flushes cerebral spinal fluid through the brain’s tissues, removing waste through the circulatory system, where it is eliminated by the liver. Research by Jeffrey Iliff, Ph.D., and associates at the University of Rochester found that this removal of toxic waste during sleep lends protection against an unhealthy build up of beta-amyloid proteins in the brain.
Reconsider your vices.
Smoking negatively affects the blood vessels of the brain, and smokers are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s as nonsmokers.
Drinking too much can also lead to problems, including Korsakoff syndrome, an alcohol-related dementia with Alzheimer’s-like symptoms.
And if you’re addicted to the salt shaker? Salt can increase blood pressure, which in turn increases your risk of Alzheimer’s.
(Submitted by Betty Dean. Written by Michele Deppe. Reprinted with permission from Vibrant Life Magazine.) Used by permission from www.LifeandHealth.org. Courtesy of LifeSpring – Resources for Hope and Healing Stuart, VA)
