You may live longer than your dad, but that doesn’t come without risk. The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that the number of people with dementia will double by 2030, according to a recently released report. The simple reason: People are living longer, says WHO Mental Health Regional Advisor Dévora Kestel, M.Sc., M.P.H. Here are three keys to remaining sharp as you grow older.
When researches measured senior citizens’ exercise for two weeks, they found that 17 percent of non-exercisers had cognitive impairment, meaning they were more forgetful and confused than those without cognitive impairment. Less than 2 percent of seniors who exercised had cognitive experience.
Try a jog on your lunch break or a class at your local gym. University of Illinois researchers found that people who worked out three times a week for six months improved their memory. Try one of our 15-minute workout plans.
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Guys who smoked showed cognitive decline that was just as bad as nonsmokers who were 10 years older than them, according to a recently published research in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Another study surveyed more than 20,000 people in their 50s and 60s and found that people who smoked more than two packs a day increased their risk of dementia by 114 percent. Why? Smoking damages your respiratory pathways, which could hurt your brain cells’ oxygen supply, says Kestel. Studies show that lack of oxygen supply is associated with dementia. (Plus, quitting smoking makes you smarter.)
Hit the Books
According to a University of California, Berkeley study, people who routinely did more writing and puzzles (think: Soduku) had lowers levels of the protein beta amyloid, the buildup of which has been found in people with Alzheimer’s. If you’re not much for reading, know this: Research shows that playing games like World of Warcraft flexes your brain muscles and improves your memory skills. There’s a reason to switch from TV to video games. (For brain exercises, read this.)
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