The more health issues you have the greater the risk of dementia.

After following over 7200 participants for 10 years, investigators with the Canadian Study of Health and Aging examined 19 different health problems such as hearing difficulties, vision problems, arthritis, denture fit, skin issues, stomach health and more.  Findings showed that each problem reported increased dementia risk by 3.2%.  Individuasl with 8 and 12 health problems had a 30% and 40% risk, respectively.

PositiveTip:  Treasure every aspect of your health and choose to preserve it for as long as possible.

Moderate physical activity delays aging and improves memory.

The human brain's hippocampus shrinks in late adulthood. This is thought to lead to memory impairment and risk for dementia. Researchers compared the impact of moderate exercise (three 40-minute sessions a week) on hippocampal volume and spatial memory of 120 adults, aged 55-80, with a control group that only did stretching and toning exercises. After one year, MRI tests revealed that the hippocampus significantly increased in the exercise group and declined with stretching. Spatial memory increased proportionally to the increase in fitness.

PositiveTip: Regular exercise yields impressive results for our bodies and minds. It really doesn't take a lot, either!

Being bilingual may delay the onset of dementia.

At the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Canadian researchers reported that bilingual adults were diagnosed with Alzheimer's 4-5 years later than patients who spoke only one language. Learning a second language can sharpen focus, improve efficiency and may help to hold off the effects of dementia. To learn more about the advantages of learning another language, listen to this intriguing podcast.

PositiveTip: Learning another language or exercising the brain in other ways may prolong one's useful years.

Heavy smoking in midlife is associated with greater than 100% increase in risk of dementia 2 decades later.

Analysis of prospective data from a multiethnic group of over 21,000 members of a health care system has found over a follow-up period of 23 years that the risk for dementia increased as the amount of smoking increased (fully-adjusted data). Specifically, those who smoked more than two packs a day in midlife had more than 2 times the risk (2.14) compared to those who did not smoke.

PositiveTip: The single best thing a smoker can do to improve their health--in the short- and long-term--is to quit!

Reduce the risk of dementia by engaging in moderate to heavy exercise regularly.

In the longest study of its kind, researchers have found that moderate to heavy exercise reduced the risk of developing any kind of dementia by 40%. This 20 year follow-up from the Framingham Study also demonstrated that those who reported the lowest levels of activity were 45% more likely to develop dementia. 

PositiveTip: To lower your risk of developing dementia, engage in at least moderate physical activity on a regular basis!

People with more abdominal fat have smaller total brain volume.

Could it really be related? Midlife obesity has long been associated with increased risk of dementia, although the how the relationship works has been poorly understood. 

Researchers examined possible associations between cerebral brain volume and obesity in 733 middle age community adults. They found a significant association between visceral (abdominal) fat and low total brain volume. The authors suggest that inflammation resulting from fat cells may negatively impact brain tissue.

Eating foods with plenty of Vitamin E seems to lower risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

Vitamin E is back in the spotlight, following dashed hopes that supplementing with this nutrient would result in many health benefits.

A new prospective Dutch study has found that those who consumed the most dietary Vitamin E at the beginning of the study experienced 25% less dementia and Alzheimer's Disease during almost 10 years of follow-up. Dietary sources of Vitamin E were primarily were primarily vegetable oils, margarine, butter and mayonnaise.

PositiveTip: A dietary pattern that includes healthy oils may substantially reduce your risk of dementia later in life.

Olive oil works as well as fish oil in preventing dementia.

Everyone wants to prevent dementia! Companies who manufacture fish oil supplements loudly proclaim the possible benefits of omega-3 fatty acids for this problem. But a 2-year British study of elderly subjects (the longest and largest study ever done on this subject) has compared the use of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil with an olive oil placebo. The study found no differences between the groups, except that those taking the highly recommended fish oil had more flatulence, belching and loose stools!

PositiveTip: An active mind and a healthy lifestyle are the best way of reducing the risk of dementia.

The combination of diet and exercise proves potent in lowering the risk of dementia.

We all know diet and exercise are important. New research suggests the combination of both may be particularly beneficial in lowering the risk of dementia. In a five-year prospective cohort study of elderly in New York, both high physical activity and high adherence to a Mediterranean diet (high intake of fruits, vegetables, and olive oil, and low intake of saturated fats, dairy products, and meats) were associated with lower risk for cognitive decline--absolute risk was 19% in people with low physical activity and low diet adherence, compared with 12% in those who reported high levels of both behaviors.

PositiveTip: Eating a healthy diet and getting appropriate physical activity regularly can improve your chances of having a sharp mind well into your sunset years!