What is dementia and how to fight it

Engaging in interesting conversation keeps the mind sharp

NOW where did I put my keys? Oh, my God, I’m losing it – I’m heading for dementia just like dad . . .

This is a common cry among people as they age, even while we are still in middle age. When young people forget things, we put it down to them having too much going on in their lives. But when we baby boomers forget dates and where we put things when we are older, we think we are losing our minds, that we are sliding into the pit of dementia – especially if our parents also suffered it.

Many people as they slide into middle age will ask “what is dementia”, especially as  there a few different categories of it, alzheimer’s being one of them.

But dementia is not a definite aspect of age. We do not have to get it, even if our parents and grandparents had it. The mind can be exercised like any other part of the body to avoid dementia, or at least to lessen its effect.

Like with our bodies, a healthy mind falls into the use it or lose it category. And the body and mind go hand in hand, so to speak.

The mind has a greater chance of staying healthy if the body is healthy. Yep, no way around this – exercise and good diet are the keys to keeping the mind nimble, as essential as exercising the mind.

Physical exercise which keeps the blood pumping ensures that the body and mind can keep working well into old age – and it is not too late to start in middle age. In other words, use it or lose it NOW.

Specific brain exercises for the brain include word games, mathematical puzzles, learning another language or learning any new skill, reading news articles every day and socialising with people of all ages as much as possible.

Even dancing the light fantastic helps exercise the brain as well as body and gives you a great emotional lift.

As for physical fitness, walking for at least 30 minutes a day, swimming or cycling are the best, least expensive ways to keep fit or get fit. But take it easy to start with and discuss any new exercise with your doctor first.

So, what is dementia?

No simple answer here as there are three main types:

Vascular dementia

A common form of dementia, it develops when there is impaired blood flow to parts of the brain, depriving cells of food and oxygen.

It can often strike after a major stroke blocks a large blood vessel to a significant portion of the brain.

It can also come after a series of very small strokes, or infarcts, block small blood vessels and cause damage over time.

With vascular dementia, symptoms include impaired memory, confusion, difficulty concentrating and following instructions, inability to carry out everyday activities and often physical weakness or permanent impairment.

Sometimes, the person loses the ability to speak or to comprehend the written word.

Alzheimer’s

This is the cruelest form,  the one most feared. Some people think this is the only form of dementia as it is the one most talked about and the one with the most dire outcome.

It also is the form of dementia most likely to be inherited and the one form which is less responsive to preventative treatment, although onset can still be lessened if  general physical and mental health have been maintained.

One of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s, especially in the early stages, is forgetting recently learned information. Others include forgetting important dates or events,  asking the same questions over and over, relying on memory prompts such as reminder notes.

People with Alzheimer’s may forget names and appointments but remember them later.

Some may start to have difficulty working with numbers or following a familiar recipe or paying bills.

The afflicted have trouble understanding something that is not happening right away or forget familiar places or people they do not see everyday. Eventually they may forget familiar people, including their nearest and dearest. That is why it is such a cruel and feared disease.

Just as frightening is the changes in mood and personality of the person with Alzheimer’s. They can become  confused, suspicious, depressed, fearful or anxious. They may be easily upset at home, at work, with friends or in places where they are out of their comfort zone.
With this form of dementia, changes to the person are more evident than with vascular dementia.

Mixed dementia

Mixed dementia is a condition in which Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia occur at the same time. Many experts believe mixed dementia occurs more often than was previously realized and that it becomes increasingly common in advanced age.

Experts recommend suspecting mixed dementia whenever a person has both evidence of cardiovascular disease and dementia symptoms that get worse slowly.

DON’T PANIC TOO SOON

Reading these dementia symptoms, you may be worried you are in the running, especially if you are starting to forget things more than you used to, so here is a helpful list of when to seek medical advice and when to relax a bit. We all forget things, even young people, so don’t immediately think the worse.

• Concern: Poor judgment and decision making; No concern: Making a bad decision once in a while
• Concern: Inability to manage a budget; No concern: Missing a monthly payment
• Concern: Losing track of the date or the season; No concern: Forgetting which day it is and remembering later
• Concern: Difficulty having a conversation; No concern: Sometimes forgetting which word to use
• Concern: Misplacing things and being unable to retrace steps to find them; No concern: Losing things from time to time

Sex gets better with age

AH, how I love to read stories about sex improving with age.

It is all about quality over quantity and that quality can be some leap – at least for women, according to one of my favourite sexperts Tracey Cox.

Darling Tracey has delivered the wonderful news that women will have more orgasms as they get older! Well, it’s about time we started to have as much fun as the men.

And, as men get older? Tracey made the unremarkable observation that men are stimulated by visual images. Hey, that’s the same for men of all ages, isn’t it? Tracey was not clear whether the men are stimulated by the sight of their same-age mates or their imaginings of more nubile models. Now, let me guess …

Anyway, the good news for women is that 90 per cent past 30 regularly experience orgasm, compared to just 23 per cent of younger women.

That is despite frequency of bedroom action dropping from an average 112 times a year for 18 to 29 year olds to 69 (the magic number!) times a year after 40.

Oh, well, you can’t have everything. And there would be many of you old devils who get fired up much more than a mere 69 times a year, especially as a growing number of us have repartnered.

Some of us in our 50s are in new relationships and, while we might not be bonking like we would have been as 25 year olds in love, we are giving it a good damn try.

It all comes down to the theme of this site – use it or lose it.

But do be careful.  It can be embarrassing if you have to take time off work because you have done your back in being over-enthusiastic between the sheets. And what would our children say? They’d be jealous for a start!