Regular exercise, a heart-healthy diet and other healthy behaviours could protect you from developing memory issues, according to a new study.
The U.S. National Library for Medicine reveals the following are signs of mild cognitive impairment:
* Lose things often
*Forget to attend events and appointments
*Find it more difficult to come up with words compared to people in your age group
Some studies suggest dementia and late-life cognitive decline have similar risk factors for heart disease. Researchers of the new study say implementing healthy lifestyle behaviours, like following the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet,
used to reduce the risk of heart disease may also help reduce the risk of cognitive decline in older people with Cognitive impairment without dementia (CIND).
The team came to this conclusion after studying the effects of aerobic exercise and the DASH diet. 160 adults, who were older than 55, participated in the study. Everyone in the group had memory issues and did not do any physical activity. The team also conducted tests to measure each participants' heart disease risk and made note of their cognitive ability. Dietary habits and the ability to perform activities were also assessed. Some participants were part of a health education group for three months.
The study's results showed exercise helped improve the ability to think, retain information, and make decisions. The DASH diet also helped improve the memory of those who did not work out. The study's findings were originally published in the journal American Geriatrics Society.
A 2018 study found a drug used to treat diabetes may help reverse memory loss. Study author Professor Christian Holscher of Lancaster University told a news portal: "Clinical studies with an older version of this drug type already showed very promising results in people with Alzheimer's disease or with mood disorders."
Adding, "Here we show that a novel triple receptor drug shows promise as a potential treatment for Alzheimer's but further dose-response tests and direct comparisons with other drugs have to be conducted in order to evaluate if this new drugs is superior to previous ones."
The study, published in Brain Research, could help scientists develop better treatment options for Alzheimer's disease. "With no new treatments in nearly 15 years, we need to find new ways of tackling Alzheimer's. It's imperative that we explore whether drugs developed to treat other conditions can benefit people with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. This approach to research could make it much quicker to get promising new drugs to the people who need them," Dr Doug Brown, Director of Research and Development at Alzheimer's Society, told a news portal.
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