Dementia is an incredibly debilitating disease without a cure. There are many different forms of dementia, but the most common is Alzheimer’s disease, which affects roughly five million Americans over the age of 65. However, there are ways to prevent dementia without having to take medication.

The Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention and Care recently reported findings on how the onset of dementia can be prevented at this year’s Alzheimer’s Association International Conference.

Preventing Dementia

The Lancet Commission was made up of 24 experts who identified six lifestyle factors along with 3 nonmedical interventions that could affect the development of dementia. According to their report, these combined nine factors affect an estimated 35 percent of all dementia cases.

The risk factors that were revealed can be diminished at every stage of life in order to help prevent the onset of dementia. The following are the stages of life and the risk factors for dementia that should be addressed at that time:

• Youth – Young people should focus on educating themselves about dementia and the risk factors associated with its development so that they can begin taking steps and making changes in their lifestyle to help avoid dementia in their later years.
• Middle age – Once people reach middle age, they should take steps to manage hearing loss, obesity and hypertension. Managing these risk factors can help reduce the occurrence rate of dementia by a combined 20 percent.
• Old age – Once a person reaches old age, risk factors that can lead to dementia include smoking, diabetes and depression. In addition to managing these risks, older individuals should also focus on physical exercise and maintaining an active social life. Addressing all of these factors together could reduce the incidence of dementia by as much as 15 percent.

Although there is currently no cure for dementia, researchers have recently determined that managing the risk factors that can lead to its development may help to reduce the incident rate by a substantial amount. To keep up with all of the latest health news and health tips, be sure to visit us at The Benefits Store today.