We’ve already written at HuffPost UK about the three best decades to build dementia defences.
You might be surprised to learn how effective lifestyle changes can be at keeping the condition at bay ― a 2020 study suggested that people who stuck to four or five healthy habits (exercising, not smoking, laying off the booze, eating well, and keeping your mind active) had a 60% lower risk of Alzheimer’s.
Alzheimer’s UK, meanwhile, puts it at 40% when considering 12 factors.
Of course, we still can’t prove exactly what lowers your risk, and to what extent; it’s very hard to isolate one behaviour, or lack thereof, from your genes and other factors.
But medical journal The Lancet’s standing commission on dementia prevention, intervention, and care has created an infographic sharing the best preventative measures by age.
What are they?
The journal did not share exactly how much different behaviours (like smoking) can affect your dementia risk. Instead, they shared how the % by which completely eliminating certain factors may decrease your chance of developing dementia.
Some (like education and traumatic brain injury) are not, or are not fully, in your control, but others are more modifiable.
1) Early life
- Those who have more education may decrease their dementia risk by 5%, The Lancet says. This is lower than the 7% risk decrease The Lancet shared in 2020.
2) Midlife
- Those without hearing loss may have a 7% lower risk
- Those without high LDL cholesterol may have a 7% lower risk
- Those without depression may have a 3% lower risk
- Those without a traumatic brain injury may have a 3% lower risk
- Those who are not physically inactive may have a 2% lower risk
- Those without diabetes may have a 2% lower risk
- Those who don’t smoke may have a 2% lower risk
- Those without hypertension may have a 2% lower risk
- Those who are not obese may have a 1% lower risk
- Those who do not drink excessively may have a 1% lower risk
3) Late life
- Those who do not face social isolation have a 5% lower risk
- Those who aren’t affected by air pollution have a 3% lower risk
- Those who have not experienced sight loss have a 2% lower risk
With all these factors combined, The Lancet says that 45% of our dementia risk factors may be “potentially modifiable.”
What if I have some of these?
Having one, or multiple, of these risk factors certainly doesn’t mean you’re definitely going to develop dementia.
Secondly, there’s research to suggest that some of these (like hypertension) are far less likely to affect your dementia risk if managed appropriately.
“We have more control over some of these factors than others. For example, we often can’t change how much air pollution we are exposed to,” Alzheimer’s Research UK says.
“But we can do more physical activity and watch what we eat,” they add ― while some lifestyle factors will be easier to modify than others, it’s worth assessing which ones you may be most able to change.
Even small changes may make a significant difference.