Staying Free Of Alzheimer’s Disease at Looking Fit

How can we prevent Alzheimer’s Disease? What causes it in the first place? Many scientists, medical personnel and others trying to answer these questions.

Learning To Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease

One of the most notable long-term studies on Alzheimer’s disease has been in progress since 1986 and is funded by the National Institute on Aging. The subjects of the study are the School Sisters of Notre Dame in Mankato, MN, giving rise to the project’s nickname of ‘The Nun Study”. This research is a joint effort between the nuns there and the University of Kentucky, under the directorship of Dr. David Snowdon. Many scientists from other universities also participate in the study.

The focus of this study is to determine the causes of Alzheimer’s disease and figure out ways to prevent it. To achieve this, each of the 678 participants agreed to participate in annual assessments of their cognitive and physical function, plus have medical exams and blood drawn for genetic and nutritional studies. They have also agreed to donate their brains for neuropathological studies when they die.

Because these nuns have all lived in similar housing, held similar jobs, and had similar access to preventive and medical care, plus all are non-smokers, drink little if any alcohol, and have the same marital status and reproductive history, it makes them easier to study. Contending with subjects from various backgrounds and diverse environments, medical history and lifestyle makes most studies more difficult. It’s easier to figure out the results when all these variable are gone, as they are with the group of nuns.

Study Discoveries

Results of this research has already shown that traits in early, mid, and late life have strong relationships with the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, as well as the mental and cognitive disabilities of old age. Bottom line, what does the research indicate YOU can do to prevent getting Alzheimer’s symptoms?

Avoiding Alzheimer’s Symptoms

From a leading researcher on Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Yaakov Stern, says, “Individuals who lead mentally stimulating lives, through education, occupation and leisure activities, have reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Studies suggest that they have 35-40% less risk of manifesting the disease. The pathology will still occur, but they are able to cope with it better. Some won’t ever be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s because they don’t present any symptoms.”

You Need To Build Your Cognitive Reserve (CR)

The ability to tolerate progressive brain pathology without demonstrating clinical cognitive symptoms is called Cognitive Reserve. To put it a different way, Cognitive Reserve is how your brain resists any physical changes caused by Alzheimer’s disease so you don’t have any of the usual symptoms like memory loss.

Building your Cognitive Reserve, your reserve of neurons, synapses and skills, is the best way to prevent Alzheimer’s disease according to researchers. However, how can we do that? Just what provides good “brain exercise” or constitutes a challenging mental activity?

To work well for building CR, an activity must:

Engage your attention.
Involve more than one of your senses.
Break a routine activity in an unexpected way.

One effective means of building your CR is learning a new language. Changing your environment by moving or traveling is another. An occupation that engages your mind, taking challenging classes, or even increased physical activity can result in increased neurogenesis (the creation of new neurons), thereby increasing your Cognitive Reserve.

Your Cognitive Reserve can, in fact, be built by almost any challenging activity. Some activities might make physical demands. Some may have interpersonal demands. Others may have challenging levels of cognitive complexity (thinking and learning). Keep challenging your brain:Build Your Cognitive Reserve with Brain Games.

Keep Alzheimer’s Away By Using Your Brain.

All the research seems to indicate the more you use your brain, the better it continues to function. Your brain can show full-blown physical symptoms of the disease, but by building up your Cognitive Reserve by learning and other challenging experiences, you increase your chances of never showing the symptoms of Alzheimer’s.

Keep yourself challenged and prevent Alzheimer’s disease!