Warding off dementia

[bbbamI]

Thanks, Moemg. Mom died in 2003 so it's been long enough not to be a hurting thing. It was terrible to lose her a bit at a time though. I hope they do come up with something to help ward this off. I'm betting on Folic Acid myself. See The Nun Study - TIME

Yes... My DH is taking folic acid as the doctor that diagnosed his dad thought that Alzheimer's could be genetic in his case. He told my husband to go to his doctor and discuss this with him. He did, blood work was done and the doctor has him on folic acid.

I guess time will tell if this helps...

 

[Khan]

I'd like to believe this but I don't.

My mother was active, bright, volunteered, read, did crafts, walked every day and still developed Alzheimer's prior to turning 70 (onset is a little hard to pin down in someone bright enough to hide it).

Like most things, it is probably a combination of genetics and environment.

I am watching my body/mind deteriorate on Mother's schedule and it scares the crap out of me.

 

[NW-Bound]

"it's"

and "your"

Did you do that on purpose?
\

If I did, I have forgotten. Dementia, here I come.

 

[TromboneAl]

I am watching my body/mind deteriorate on Mother's schedule and it scares the crap out of me.

I use three data points to estimate how my mind will deteriorate: Mom at age 93, Sister at 65, and me at 55. The function I get is a pretty straight line, and I think I know what to expect.

However, I think that my exercising hard six days a week will give me an advantage. It's so hard to know for sure, but I feel that I'm better at things like remembering movie star names than I was two years ago. Whenever I think of skipping a day of exercise, I remind myself that I need to do it to keep my mind in shape.

I'm also using my brain so much that it hurts.

If I had to guess, I'd say that exercising hard counts for 90% of dementia off-warding, and using your mind 10%.

 

[Khan]

I use three data points to estimate how my mind will deteriorate: Mom at age 93, Sister at 65, and me at 55. The function I get is a pretty straight line, and I think I know what to expect.

However, I think that my exercising hard six days a week will give me an advantage. It's so hard to know for sure, but I feel that I'm better at things like remembering movie star names than I was two years ago. Whenever I think of skipping a day of exercise, I remind myself that I need to do it to keep my mind in shape.

I'm also using my brain so much that it hurts.

If I had to guess, I'd say that exercising hard counts for 90% of dementia off-warding, and using your mind 10%.

Probably true, but my genetic inheritance includes crippling arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and ulnar nerve entrapment. As I said: all right on schedule.

 

[CuppaJoe]

....
I am watching my body/mind deteriorate on Mother's schedule and it scares the crap out of me.

Now I know what mom meant by one of her mantras, "Don't get old."

 

[Moemg]

TromboneAl[/LEFT];805473]

If I had to guess, I'd say that exercising hard counts for 90% of dementia off-warding, and using your mind 10%.

Normally I would believe that but My Mother's side of the family have incredibly longevity with no signs of dementia and as for activity except for occasional walks ,poker playing and playing the slots not too active . My Aunt is 102 and totally clear . My uncle died last year at 93 and they were saying it's sad because he's so young .

 

[NW-Bound]

I normally do not pay attention to the ads on the banner at the top of the page.

However, just now noticed that on top of this thread are ads entitled "Alzheimer's Symptoms" and "Dementia Types".

There is also "Alcoholic Dementia". Wait! Shouldn't that be on the currently hot thread about "Best beer for the buck"?

 

[Zoocat]

Exercising your brain can be done for free very easily. One suggestion is to take online, free courses through major universities.
Here's a central clearing house called Open Culture.
Open Culture

 

[Nords]

There is also "Alcoholic Dementia". Wait! Shouldn't that be on the currently hot thread about "Best beer for the buck"?

Gosh, it's been up there for a long time!

Why... don't you remember?

 

[NW-Bound]

Now that you've mentioned it, perhaps I even clicked on it a while back. But what was it about?

 

[Amethyst]

Khan wrote, I am watching my body/mind deteriorate on Mother's schedule and it scares the crap out of me.

I'm sorry, Khan. For what it is worth, any mental deterioration is as invisible to your readers on the forum, as your physical troubles.

 

[Khan]

Khan wrote, I am watching my body/mind deteriorate on Mother's schedule and it scares the crap out of me.

I'm sorry, Khan. For what it is worth, any mental deterioration is as invisible to your readers on the forum, as your physical troubles.

That's what's cool about the 'net: I can take 15 minutes to compose a sentence, while opening numerous tabs to check spelling and definitions and history.

 

[Achiever51]

My Mom who is 93 and still sharp does the crossword daily and reads constantly .

Ditto with my 90 year old Dad and my 94 year old aunt...both read several papers daily and do crossword, jumbo, and other puzzles.

 

[FinallyRetired]

Not sure of the difference between dementia and Altzheimer's, but the latter is a terrible disease, especially early onset. DW's close relative died from it after 15 years of going downhill. Best we can figure it started in her mid 40s, and was a steady decline through the next 10 years. For the last 5 she had to be kept in an Altzheimer's ward, and pretty much lost memory of all but some fleeting childhood things. In the end it affects the brain's ability to handle even simple tasks like walking, focusing the eyes, and even breathing.

We tried everything, approved and alternative drugs and treatments. Whether they extended life I don't know, but we saw a pretty steady decline. As I said, it's a terrible disease, and AFAIK there is no way to ward it off, it's just one of those things. We did learn the power of love and caring, and how important friends and family are in such situations. And, of course, we support the Altzheimer's foundation, hoping one day we can eliminate this scourge.

Loss of short term memory in the elderly may be related to Altzheimers but, having seen the effects of a serious case, it's child's play in comparison.

 

[ls99]

Thinking back in my early teens, watching grandma do weird things and the adults calling her the English version of dotty, probably referred to Alzheimer's.

She would go and feed non existent ducks, horses, geese. They were on the farm, but not in the area where she was hauling the feed to. She was in her late eighties then.

 

[Jay_Gatsby]

Exercise is important, too. See: Exercising Generates New Brain Cells...: Scientific American

I would absolutely agree with this. People think I'm crazy to spend 4 days in the gym and 2 more practicing martial arts (which involves stretching and some meditation). Yet for some strange reason, I look better and am healthier than they are.

 

[mickeyd]

Alzheimer's runs in my family (my mother). So does diabetes (me). So working out at least 5 days/week for 60-90 minutes is part of what I do for me and my family.

The alternatives are too severe to do any thing else.