45% of Dementia May Be Preventable. What Does That Mean For You?

<p>Nearly half of dementia cases may be linked to risk factors we can change. That means there are meaningful steps we can take—through healthcare, lifestyle, and the choices we make every day—to help lower our risk over time.</p><p>In this Summer Highlights episode, Annie explains why midlife is such an important window for prevention and takes a closer look at hearing loss, LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, alcohol, and physical inactivity. She also explains how vascular health and brain health are closely connected. We also go beyond those risk factors to talk about nutrition and exercise—two of the most important tools Annie recommends for protecting the brain—as well as sleep, stress, social connection, and preventive healthcare.</p><p>The takeaway: you don’t need to change everything at once. Know your numbers, get your hearing and vision checked, move your body, eat for brain health, and pick one place to begin.</p><h3><b>Chapters</b></h3><p>00:00 Dementia prevention and what we can change<br />02:01 What is a modifiable risk factor?<br />02:49 Why midlife matters<br />05:25 Hearing loss and brain health<br />07:55 LDL cholesterol and dementia risk<br />09:47 Blood pressure, smoking, and diabetes<br />13:49 Alcohol and the brain<br />15:46 Exercise as a brain-health tool<br />16:29 Why nutrition matters<br />18:47 Annie’s framework for protecting your brain</p><p></p><p>Links</p><p>Listen to the<a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/14-ways-to-protect-your-brain-the-dementia-prevention/id1869700282?i=1000771338055" target="_blank"> full episode</a></p><p><a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="brainhealthkitchen.substack.com" target="_blank">Brain Health Kitchen</a></p><p><a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736%2824%2901296-0/abstract" target="_blank">Lancet Commission Report on Dementia</a></p><p>Dr. Fenn’s paper in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease: <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/13872877251386482" target="_blank">Air Pollution and Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention: The Science and a Prevention Plan</a></p><p></p>