Managing BP, diabetes, obesity can reduce risk of dementia by 60 pc: Experts

Blood pressure diabetes and obesity are preventable risk factors that can help reduce the chances or reverse the odds of dementia by 60 per cent said experts on World Alzheimers Day on SaturdayWorld Alzheimers Day is commemorated every year on September 21 to raise awareness about the stigma associated with dementia and Alzheimers disease and to increase public understanding of these disordersThe theme this year is Time to act on dementia Time to act on AlzheimersAlzheimerrsquos disease a debilitating cognitive and neurological disorder gradually erodes a personrsquos memory language skills thinking skills and ability to perform even the simplest tasksIt primarily affects individuals over the age of 65 and is the leading cause of dementia in older adultsIt is one of the most common causes of dementia or memory loss The incidence of Alzheimerrsquos disease in India is growing steadily while it may not be alarming The disease is affecting the elderly more but it is also showing signs of increase in the younger populationldquoThe time to act on dementia is to work on the preventable risk factors of dementia And if we work on the preventable risk factors of dementia we can reduce or reverse dementia by 60 per centrdquo Dr Manjari Tripathi head of the neurology department at AIIMS told IANSSo what are these preventable risk factorsldquoControlling blood pressure diabetes not smoking or drinking alcohol and reducing body weight or obesity levels There should also be no insomnia Take treatment for insomnia and obstructive sleep apnoea because sleep if impaired can impair memoryrdquo Tripathi saidIn addition leading an unhealthy lifestyle which is sedentary with no exercise or not learning any new skill in old age being passive just sitting on the chair or staying more on the couch may also harm cognitive functionsResearch published in Alzheimerrsquos and Dementia revealed that 74 per cent of people aged 60 and older live with dementia in India amounting to roughly 88 million individuals The study was done using nationally representative data collected in India from 2017 to 2020Strikingly dementia prevalence was found to be higher among females 9 per cent compared to males 58 per cent particularly in rural areasThe research highlights that the number of Indians with dementia could rise to 169 million by 2036 if current trends continueWomen have a much higher lifetime risk of developing Alzheimers than men This could be due to a mix of biological genetic and lifestyle factors Dr Arindam Ghosh Consultant Neurologist Narayana Health Kolkata told IANSIn India where womenrsquos life expectancy is longer we see a notable gender disparity in Alzheimers cases Ghosh addedThe experts stressed the need for boosting awareness about the condition which can help in early diagnosisTripathi explained that Alzheimers has three stages early middle and late Therapy is begun in the early stage to prevent the disease from progressing at a fast rateldquoIt is essential that all people are brought in early when the early symptoms start after which tests can be done to make the diagnosisrdquo the neurologist saidEarly symptoms include memory loss that disrupts daily life poor judgement losing track of dates or knowing the current location repeating questions or forgetting recently learned informationldquoThe diagnosis is made carefully by taking clinical history from the caregiver and other neuropsychological tests like MRI brain blood tests like Vitamin B12 thyroid Vitamin D There are also biomarker tests after which we do a PET brain test and then diagnosis can be achievedrdquo Tripathi told IANSThe expert suggested people start actively making a healthy lifestyle with proper diet and aerobic exercises especially after the age of 35Besides a healthy lifestyle she suggested people indulge in cognitive tasks like puzzles sudoku art music pet therapy learning a new dance learning a new language and learning new skills basically to have a purpose in lifeldquoIf you can act on all these then we can prevent dementia That is why it is time to act on dementia All these actions need to start by the age of 35 graduallyrdquo Tripathi saidAlso Read Spend too much time in front of screens That coupled with no exercise may lead to digital dementiaThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever