SubscribeExercise Your Brain—Learn a New Language
Scientists have proven that one way to prevent memory loss, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia is to keep your brain active your whole life. Look on the internet and you’ll see extensive scientific research. Whereas in the old days before this new research, scientists believed that the brain essentially quit growing after a person reached the early 20s, now the studies are showing that when the brain is stimulated to produce new neural pathways (brain cell connections) continuously, the brain will keep growing and improving.
Reading Together with Your Loved One Who Has Alzheimer’s
What can you do that you know will help your father who has Alzheimer’s have a good visit with you? How about reading? It’s possible that your father suffers from poor eyesight or has lost his ability to follow along with a story. But reading can be a good way to keep a person’s mind active because it brings up thoughts that can be talked about and shared. It can also relax and please someone who always loved reading.
Alzheimer’s Disease — No Longer Thought of as a One-Way Street
As you age, it is as important to take as much care of your brain as you do your body. Getting older affects our minds as much as it does our bodies. Over your lifetime, the ability of your brain to fight the damage of getting older, known as cognitive reserve, is no better than the response of your other muscles if you do not keep them toned. As the brain ages you begin having trouble focusing and performing actions that used to be a breeze. Don’t get discouraged, you can strengthen up your mind just like you strengthen those other muscles, by exercising your brain.