Home Doctor: Practical Medicine for Every Household
Are There Ways to Prevent Dementia? There is no way to prevent dementia as an evolutionary process of a chronic disease, but there are ways to exercise the brain to slow that process. Maintaining proper control of chronic diseases that can lead to dementia is important. Regular visits to the specialist to check blood pressure levels or to evaluate the effectiveness of diabetes treatments should be a priority. In medical practice, we very often see hypertensive patients who have been diagnosed and prescribed treatment and have not returned for an evaluation for years. They are used to following that same treatment without knowing if the disease has evolved or if it is causing any harm. Remember that hypertension is called the “silent killer” because the body is able to adapt to high blood pressure without causing any symptoms until the damage is severe. The main damage is vascular, and among the organs that are damaged most quickly are the kidneys, the eyes, and the brain. By recognizing any of the symptoms that make up the dementia state, treatment can be initiated that improves the patient’s condition and quality of life. A gluten-free diet, which has become trendy in recent years, has been shown to improve behavior in those with conditions such as autism and ADHD. Some professionals recommend it as a way to improve cognitive and intellectual processes as well, but there is no scientific evidence to support it. The evidence is through the testimony of patients that have had a positive response to this type of diet. Brain exercise is recommended to preserve the thinking skills. Activities such as learning another language or a musical instrument, word or number games, crossword puzzles, reading groups, and puzzles are always a good and entertaining idea.
• Crosswords: https://puzzles.usatoday.com/ and https://www.boatloadpuzzles.com/playcrossword • Sudoku: https://sudoku.com/ • Games for the brain: https://www.gamesforthebrain.com/ • Scrabble Club: https://isc.ro/index.php One of my best friends is an Alzheimer’s and dementia nursing home coordinator in Florida. She has been in this job for about ten years, and I always wonder how she does it. This is a very hard disease, and it must be frustrating for a health care worker to watch a patient deteriorate without being able to do much. However, she does not think about any of the things that worry me and instead does her job cheerfully. Recently she explained to me that sometimes people come in who are very deteriorated, almost unable to speak. However, she notices their expressions according to what each experience makes them feel. She is in charge of preparing new caregivers and one of the first things she makes them understand is that the person may not remember your name or your face but will always remember what you made them feel the first time. Always be kind.
36
