Dementia is used to describe poor memory, thinking, or decision-making that interferes with performing daily tasks. Rather than a specific disease. As far as dementia goes, Alzheimer’s disease is the most prevalent. Despite the fact that dementia primarily affects older persons, it is not a natural aspect of aging. As cells get damaged and die throughout the brain in Alzheimer’s disease, connections between networks of neurons may deteriorate. By this, the brain regions start to shrink. This widespread process, known as brain atrophy, results in a large reduction in brain volume by the later stages of Alzheimer’s.
What Is the Mediterranean Diet?
A significant body of research backs the Mediterranean diet. According to studies, this diet can slow cognitive decline in addition to improving the heart, lowering diabetes, preventing bone loss, encouraging weight loss, and other health benefits. The traditional foods of Greece, Italy, and other nations bordering the Mediterranean Sea are the foundation of the Mediterranean diet. This diet is an eating plan. The basis of Mediterranean diet is composed primarily of plant-based foods, such as whole grains, vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices. Extra virgin olive oil is heavily promoted. Butter and other fats are hardly often if ever, consumed. Refined sugar and flour-based confections and products are uncommon.
The only time meat appears is typically to spice a dish. Eggs, dairy, and poultry should be in meals instead, but in far lesser amounts than in the typical Western diet. Fish, which is a staple and rich in brain-boosting omega-3 fatty acids, is another.
Therefore, according to a report published on Monday in the medical journal BMC Medicine, an analysis of data from more than 60,000 seniors showed that choosing to follow a Mediterranean diet lowers a person’s risk of developing dementia by almost one-quarter, even among those with genes that put that at greater risk.
Symptoms and Signs of Dementia
Dementia is a broad term, therefore each person will experience it differently. Dementia sufferers struggle with:
- Memory.
- Attention/Communication.
- problem-solving, judgment, and reasoning.
- Above and beyond the standard visual problems associated with aging.
Dementia-related warning signs include:
- Being lost in a familiar area.
Marco Verch Professional Photographer CC0
(Flickr CC0) - Using strange phrases to refer to everyday items.
- Losing the name of a close friend or family member.
- Ignoring previous experiences.
- Not being able to do chores on your own.
The underlying cause of dementia affects how it is treated. Although there is no known cure for neurodegenerative dementias like Alzheimer’s, there are drugs that can help preserve the brain or control symptoms like anxiety or behavioral abnormalities. There is continuing research to create more therapeutic alternatives.
Additionally, a healthy lifestyle, which includes regular exercise, a nutritious diet, and maintaining social connections, lowers the risk of chronic disease development and may lower the number of persons who have dementia.
Reducing the Risks of Dementia
- Getting enough sleep.
- Controlling the blood pressure.
- Having healthy cholesterol and blood glucose levels.
All of those are strategies that anyone may do to maintain brain health and lower their risk of developing dementia, according to Shannon.
According to the latest study, there is roughly a 25% lower risk of developing dementia. By engaging in something that is not really difficult, there is a significant risk decrease, he continued.
Moreover, Even though it’s unclear exactly how the Mediterranean diet can lower the incidence of dementia, Wisniewski said it probably has a number of benefits, including lowering antioxidant levels, reducing inflammation, and enhancing microbiota health. As there is no effective drug to treat dementia, specialists have started emphasizing lifestyle.
Dr. Emily Rogalski, a cognitive neuroscientist and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said that since there is no effective medication to treat dementia, experts have been concentrating on lifestyle factors that may have some bearing on risk. Whether there ever is a time when dementia cannot be prevented, is currently unknown. But losing up and declaring that it was too late was definitely not the best approach, she added.
Written by Kelianexis Rodriguez
Sources:
CDC GOV: About Dementia
CNN: Mediterranean diet linked with reduced risk of developing dementia
NBC NEWS: Mediterranean diet may reduce risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s, research shows
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Marco Verch Professional Photographer Flickr page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Marco Verch Professional Photographer Flickr page – Creative Commons License
