Dementia is becoming one of the most common diseases in the US. It’s a progressive disease and one that starts early in life and continues until the end. Moreover, it’s a disease that has torn families apart and led them to financial distress.

More than five million Americans have Alzheimer’s and dementia-related diseases. The majority of those who have these diseases are 65 years and older, but younger people are still susceptible to such a disease. Additionally, women and those part of the minority are more susceptible to developing dementia in their lives.

Dementia has been known to be the prime cause as to why seniors are sent to a nursing home. In addition to this, this disease has been attributed to families losing a decent chunk of their income to take care of someone with dementia in their household.

There is no cure for dementia, and most medicine aims to reduce its symptoms. However, experts believe it’s better to avoid getting dementia entirely than treat it. This way, people can avoid the expensive costs of such a disease. Here are ways you can prevent dementia later on in life.

Reduce Stress

The diathesis-stress model explains that people who are part of a family with a history of Alzheimer’s are more prone to develop the disease later on in life. However, this depends entirely on the activities of a person. Stress is one major factor that predicts a person’s eventual development of genetic diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Stress plays a significant role in our mental health. It’s good to be stressed occasionally because it develops our personality and helps us adapt to ever-changing circumstances. People who have experienced stress in their lives are more likely to be more resilient than those who don’t experience it as much. However, too much stress can be problematic.

Seniors who are often exposed to stress are more likely to develop dementia-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s in the future. Those who have a history of such diseases in their family doubles this chance. It’s important to reduce stress in your life if you don’t want to develop dementia in the future.

You can do this in various ways. You can start practicing self-awareness exercises such as meditation and yoga. Getting a vacation a couple of times a year can also help. You can reduce stress in your life, as well as your chances of getting dementia.

Brain Stimulating Exercises

Brain stimulation is related to all sorts of mental illnesses. It’s important to have an aptly stimulated brain to avoid severe mental diseases such as dementia.
Many brain-stimulating exercises are known to prevent Alzheimer’s and doing these activities once a day or a couple of times a week can help prevent you from getting such a disease in the future. If not, it can reduce its symptoms or make it more manageable. Here are some of those activities:

• Crossword puzzles
• Scrabble
• Card games like Uno or Solitaire
• Chess
• Reading and writing
• Painting
• Drawing

Interestingly enough, playing video games is also known to reduce cognitive decline among older people. It can help improve their memory and stimulate their brains better than some of the activities on this list.

We all know the saying that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Well, this isn’t entirely the case for human beings. Older people can still learn new skills, albeit at a much slower pace when compared to younger people.

Learning new skills has been attributed to combat the early stages of dementia. For example, one skill that has been related to reducing cognitive decline is vocabulary and speech practice. There is much in-home speech therapy that can help seniors practice their vocabulary and speech. This therapy can help your senior stay stimulated throughout the years and help prevent dementia.

Another interesting skill that’s easy for many seniors to learn is playing a new instrument. Learning how to play a new instrument has been known to prevent Alzheimer’s. It’s also known to keep a person’s mind alert.

Staying Active

Lastly, staying active can help prevent the early onset of dementia among adults. You can stay active by playing sports or doing exercises a couple of times a week. A simple walk for thirty minutes can keep your mind sharp and healthy. If you have a senior at home, a good home health aide can help them get the necessary exercise they need every day. They can do it while you’re not at home or if you’re too busy to help them out.

Staying active also means going out to see friends and family and communicating with them. A healthy support system can help you stay active in later stages of life. Furthermore, it can also keep you physically healthy as well.
Avoiding dementia can be challenging, especially if it’s in your blood. But if you do these activities often, you should avoid them happening in your life. Moreover, these are good tips to help any seniors avoid dementia.