Amidst a fast-paced lifestyle, where health is not always kept as a priority, one must really take out some time to understand one’s body. Dementia is one of the fastest-spreading problems in the current times due to multiple factors, and one shouldn’t be unaware of it. Let’s get you all the information you need to protect your brain! Let’s begin from the beginning.
What is Dementia?
Dementia is not a single disease and is an “umbrella term” for a group of symptoms that occur when the brain is damaged by various conditions. This can impact a lot of things, and the most common reason is Alzheimer’s. The evident symptom is a significant decline in mental ability, such as memory, reasoning, and communication, that goes beyond normal aging. People tend to forget things and often have other accompanying symptoms. While it’s often associated with memory loss primarily, it also frequently causes changes in mood and certain other physiological aspects.
How to detect dementia?
Detecting dementia requires noticing symptoms. It usually starts with noticing subtle shifts in behavior that are likely associated with old age. If you feel positive about any of the given things, this can be a reason.
Memory & Focus
If someone finds it hard to focus in an extreme manner, or has started to forget things that they have recently learnt, it can be a sign. If this frequency increases, it is alarming.
Confusion
Getting confused in finding ways, deciding things, or recalling a particular name or more can also be symptoms.
Personality Shifts
This is a response rather than a symptom but can also be counted as one. It has sudden mood swings or even uncharacteristic suspicion.
Ways to protect your brain from dementia
If someone feels they have any of the symptoms, they can follow these ways to protect their brain.
Move Your Body
Doing physical activity is important. Try to go for at least 100-150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity weekly. Exercise increases blood flow to the brain and stimulates “BDNF,” a protein that nourishes your brain cells and keeps them healthy.
Eat Well
Remember to have a balanced and good diet that is rich in all the important nutrients. Focus on leafy greens, berries, nuts, fatty fish, and more. You can also practice cutting back on processed sugars and red meats.
Prioritize Deep Sleep
Getting enough sleep is important. If you have been persistently disrupting your sleep schedule, try to fix it to get a good number of hours when you can rest.
Stay Social
Isolation is a major risk factor, not just for dementia alone, but for a lot of mental health issues too. Regular, healthy interaction with others keeps your brain engaged and wards off depression and other possible reasons that can put your brain through stress and anxiety.
Check Your Hearing
While this may sound unrelated, it’s not. Recent studies show that unaddressed hearing loss makes the brain work harder to process sound, often taking a toll on the memory.
If you need further assistance or expert opinion, you should reach out to a professional. Also, if you are noticing any signs of depression, anxiety, or any other mental health problem, talk to a counsellor or a professional for the best and most personalized advice.
