A new study has found keeping your heart healthy in your 40s and 50s can lower the risk of dementia later in life.
Historically, it’s been believed that keeping your brain active – by doing crosswords or learning a new language – could help protect the brain.
But a study from the Oxford University and University College London has concluded keeping fit is just as important.
The researchers at the Oxford University and University College London tracked the health of 10,000 British people for 36 years and found people who led an active lifestyle in their 40s and their 50s stood a greater chance of lowering the risk of dementia.
The study also found that other factors that contribute to heart health, such as a healthy diet, not smoking and reducing salt intake, were also key.
The lesson? Make those positive changes sooner rather than later.
“It’s very much a case of early prevention for maximum gain… when you’re young, you’ve got to start thinking about the long-term consequences, rather than wait until you get old and hope someone cures you,” Dr Scott Chiesa, research associate at the UCL Institute of Cardiovascular Science, said.
With dementia the second leading cause of death in Australia – and the leading cause of death among women – it’s clearly worth being on the front foot.
