Seven healthy habits may now lower the chances of developing dementia in people with the highest genetic risk, according to the latest published research.
The habits are the seven cardiovascular and brain health factors, known as the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7:
- being active;
- eating better;
- losing weight;
- not smoking;
- maintaining a healthy blood pressure;
- controlling cholesterol; and
- reducing blood sugar.
“These healthy habits in the Life’s Simple 7 have been linked to a lower risk of dementia overall, but it is uncertain whether the same applies to people with a high genetic risk,” said study author Adrienne Tin (pictured), PhD, of the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
“The good news is that even for people who are at the highest genetic risk, living by this same healthier lifestyle makes you likely to have a lower risk of dementia.”
The study, published in the May 25 online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, looked at 8,823 people with European ancestry and 2,738 people with African ancestry who were followed for 30 years. People had an average age of 54 at the beginning.
The American Academy of Neurology is the world’s largest association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals, with 38,000 members. A neurologist is a doctor with specialised training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, concussion, Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy.
A healthy lifestyle seems the prevention for most ailments.
