Tag: dementia

Health Tip of the Day ~ Is Dementia Linked to Alcohol Consumption?

Yes, alcohol consumption has been linked to an increased risk of developing dementia

Chronic heavy drinking can cause long-term damage to the brain, leading to a range of cognitive impairments, including memory loss, confusion, and difficulty with decision-making.

Studies have shown that heavy alcohol consumption over a long period of time increases the risk of developing dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, and other forms of cognitive impairment. The risk is particularly high for individuals who have a history of alcohol abuse or dependence, as well as those who have a genetic predisposition to developing dementia.

It is important to note that moderate alcohol consumption has not been found to increase the risk of developing dementia. However, heavy drinking, especially over a prolonged period, can have serious consequences for brain health and cognitive function.

Source: ChaptCPT openAI

Today’s Health Tip ~ What to Maintain a Healthy Mind?

If You Take Care of Your Heart, You’re Taking Care of Your Brain

You know how to take care of your heart: Eat a healthy diet, get plenty of exercise, don’t smoke, and don’t drink too much. These healthy habits are good for your brain, too. Researchers tracked 1,588 dementia-free older adults for 21 years. At the end of the study period, they tallied up each person’s risk factors for heart disease, such as smoking, drinking, obesity, cholesterol, and blood pressure. They also tested memory and thinking skills. Those who had greater risk for heart disease also had a faster decline in brain performance over the years.

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Today’s Health Tip ~ What Lifestyle Habits May Reduce the Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease?

There’s strong evidence that healthy lifestyle habits — such as diet, exercise and not smoking — may play a role in reducing your risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. . . . In particular, the Mediterranean diet has been associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. The Mediterranean diet is also linked to improved cognition in people who are at risk of heart and other vascular diseases. The Mediterranean diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and fish and uses olive oil as the primary cooking fat. This type of diet is also a heart-healthy diet that reduces the risk of conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. These conditions are also risk factors for dementia.

Here are some steps that promote good overall brain health:

    • Avoid smoking.
    • Control vascular risk factors, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
    • Eat a balanced diet — such as the Mediterranean diet — that’s rich in vegetables, fruits and lean protein, particularly protein sources containing omega-3 fatty acids.
    • Be physically and socially active, including engaging in aerobic exercise.
    • Maintain a healthy weight.
    • Take care of your mental health.
    • Use thinking (cognitive) skills, such as memory skills.
    • Avoid head injury.
    • Treat hearing loss.
    • Limit alcohol consumption.

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😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ Choose the Right Eating Path for a Healthy Brain

A Healthy Diet Builds Brainpower

Do your brain a favor and choose foods that are good for your heart and waistline. Being obese in middle age makes you twice as likely to have dementia later on. High cholesterol and high blood pressure raise your chances, too. Try these easy tips:

  • Bake or grill foods instead of frying.
  • Cook with “good” fats like oils from nuts, seeds, and olives instead of cream, butter, and fats from meat.
  • Eat colorful fruits and veggies.
  • Eat fish.

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😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ It’s a No Brainer

Meditation is Good for You and Your Brain

There are thousands of years of anecdotal evidence that meditation can help a person psychologically, and perhaps neurologically. The scientific evidence for meditation’s effects on the brain has exploded in the last five or 10 years. Meditation has been linked to increased brain volume in certain areas of the cerebral cortex, along with less volume in the brain’s amygdala, which controls fear and anxiety. It’s also been linked to reduced activity in the brain’s default mode network (DMN), which is active when our minds are wandering about from thought to thought, which are typically negative and distressing. Meditation also seems to lead to changes to the white matter tracks connecting different regions of the brain, and to improved attention and concentration.

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😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ Let’s Get Moving

Weave heart-pumping exercise into your daily routine.

“A surprising amount of evidence points to this as the No. 1 thing you can do to improve brain health,” Gordon says. In addition to lowering your risk of hypertension and diabetes, improving mood and sleep, and helping with weight control, aerobic exercise may activate certain beneficial genes in the brain. Benefits accrue no matter what age you start, he says.”

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I’m heading for the gym and the elliptical machine, good for my heart, good for my brain

😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ Laugh it Up, Often!

Laughter can trigger the brain’s emotional reward center, delivering a heaping dose of feel-good dopamine and mood-lifting serotonin. It can even increase the release of endorphins, the pain-relieving chemicals our brain releases in response to such things as exercise, food and sex.

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I think I’ll skip watching the thriller tonight and check out the comedy channel.

 

😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ Don’t Shrink Your Brain’s Frontal Lobes

Watch What You Drink

You know that too many drinks can affect your judgment, speech, movement, and memory. But did you know alcohol can have long-term effects? Too much drinking over a long period of time can shrink the frontal lobes of your brain. And that damage can last forever, even if you quit drinking. A healthy amount is considered one drink a day for women and two for men.

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😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ A Happy Brain Keeps Negative Emotions Under Control

Take Charge of Your Emotions

Take charge of negative emotions (worry, anger, sadness, irritation). Negative emotions impairs and overwhelms your prefrontal cortex, the brain’s CEO or executive function region, so that you can’t “think straight.” Too much negative stress damages the ability to focus and harms health. The great news is that the same things that improve health can improve the mind’s ability to manage negative emotions. Sleep well, exercise, do a mindfulness practice or choose the slow lane from time to time, even for a few minutes.

😎 Today’s Happy Brain ~ Challenge Your Brain to Learn

Try Something New – Make Your Brain Learn

Remember trying to talk backwards as a child? Researchers at Duke University created exercises they call “neurobics,” which challenge your brain to think in new ways. Since your five senses are key to learning, use them to exercise your mind. If you’re right-handed, try using your left hand. Drive to work by another route. Close your eyes and see if you can recognize food by taste.

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