If you’re a baby-boomer, like me, you’re probably worried about Alzheimer’s. Seventy-eight million of us are entering our sixties, and, according to SeniorJournal.com, someone in the States develops the dreaded disease every seventy seconds.
Among my friends, we joke about any occurrence of forgetfulness: I’m having a senior moment; Oops! It’s my half-heimers! But we worry. Some of us have lost parents— watched them dwindle and regress until they finally arrived at an end we perceive as ignominious.
Alzheimer’s cannot be prevented, slowed or cured, though we need to galvanize resources towards that end, or go broke. According to the Alzheimer’s Association Facts and Figures for 2010, five point three million people have Alzheimer’s currently; the disease costs us 172 billion a year; and it is now the seventh leading cause of death, and the fifth among those 65 and older. Between 2006 and 2010, breast and prostate cancer, stroke, heart disease and HIV have all declined as killers but Alzheimer’s has increased by 46.1 percent.
The older we get, the higher the chance of the disease, and the risk doubles every five years. So if I live to be 85, I’ll have a one-in-four risk of dying from Alzheimer’s. If I were a male, that risk would be almost halved. However, if I were Black or Hispanic, it would be increased.
Although the Alzheimer’s Association insists the disease can’t be prevented, they’re cautiously optimistic about research being conducted. And they support studies to investigate associations between reduced cognitive decline and several factors over which we have some degree of control.
The best way to decrease your risk may be to maintain optimum health: exercise regularly; eat lots of fruit and veggies and fish high in omega threes and not too much sugar; stay intellectually active; engage in social activities. That’s good news for those of us who have a lifetime of fitness, healthy eating habits, intellectual stimulation and learning, and a network of friends. But we’re not really sure.
Presently, we have to hope that associations between physical and brain health will be shown by clinical trials to be cause and effect, and not just observation and anecdote.
Nonetheless, encouraging news comes from a growing body of research: time spent in information-processing activities appears to reduce the risks by 47%. There are indications that higher education also reduces the risk. Studies suggest that, even in the presence of plaques, the more formal education a person has, the better the memory and learning ability. In other words, highly educated people may be unimpaired despite the disease.
As for me, I’m studying Spanish, reading, writing, walking, and trying to eat right. I have a growing circle of friends with whom to discuss, debate and laugh. I’ve bought a subscription to Luminosity, a brain training program, and I’m working it. What are you doing?
