Mental and cognitive activities have the greatest benefit, followed by physical and social activities.
Reading a book, spending time with family and friends, making crafts, yoga, sports and volunteering are among those activities that a person can do more often in order to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and generally dementia, shows a new study by Chinese scientists. Mental-cognitive activities have the greatest benefit, followed by physical and social activities.
The researchers, led by Professor Lin Lu of Peking University’s Sixth Hospital and IDG Brain Institute/McGovern Institute, who published in the journal Neurology of the American Academy of Neurology, conducted a broad systematic review and meta-analysis. of all available international research on the effects of various activities (mental, physical, social) on the risk of dementia.
Previous studies have shown that recreational leisure activities are associated with a variety of health benefits, such as a lower risk of cancer or heart arrhythmia, but until now it was unclear whether this also applied to dementia. The new study confirms that leisure activities reduce the likelihood of dementia to a lesser or greater extent.
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The researchers evaluated 38 studies from around the world, which involved a total of more than two million people who did not have dementia at the start of the studies and who were then followed for at least three years. Participants provided information about their activities either through interview or questionnaires. During the studies, 74,700 people were diagnosed with dementia (including 2,848 with Alzheimer’s disease).
The conclusion of the new study is that people who had a variety of activities in their free time, doing things that pleased them on a mental-cognitive, physical or social level, had an average 17% lower risk of developing dementia later in life, compared to those who had no such activities.
The greatest reduction in the risk of dementia (23%) is for those who engage mainly in intellectual activities such as reading and writing for pleasure, watching television, listening to the radio, playing board games or musical instruments, using a computer, handicrafts etc.
A 17% reduction in the risk of dementia is brought about by physical activities such as walking, running, swimming, cycling, gymnastics, sports, yoga and dancing. A 7% reduction in the risk of dementia is brought by social activities such as more frequent communication with relatives and friends, attending educational seminars, participating in social clubs and groups, volunteering, attending religious-church activities, etc.
“This meta-analysis shows that being active has benefits, and there are many activities that are easy to incorporate into daily life that can be beneficial for the brain,” said Dr. Lu.
The World Health Organization estimates that more than 55 million people live with dementia worldwide, and their number is expected to increase significantly in the future.
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