The risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease are diverse, and can be genetic factors you get from your parents or a lifestyle you repeat every day, most of which are not fully understood, even by scientists, in relation to the disease. We are worried about the disease and our own risk of developing it, and a recent study found about 20 or so modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, which means we are not completely helpless against this horrible dementia disease. Here are the nine modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease identified by Dr. Jintai Yu’s research and the corresponding brain-friendly health strategies. 1, obesity, especially in middle age obesity how to increase the risk of AD: Dr. Maraganore said “obesity on the overall health of the bad can not be overstated. When it comes to memory function, obesity may be a feature of an individual’s high-sugar and high-cured-food diet, while the opposite of a brain-healthy diet – the Mediterranean diet – can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by half. Obesity may also be representative of an individual’s lack of exercise, considering that the area of the brain responsible for memory can continue to grow in people over the age of 70 if they are physically active. In addition, obesity may lead to a number of other independent impairments, which are to be further explored by researchers.” The response: getting your weight up to a healthy standard and keeping it there is as simple as that (yet easier said than done). Although being underweight won’t do you any good (more on this below), maintaining a “normal” weight is recommended at any age. 2. Weakness How to increase the risk of AD: At the other end of the spectrum, underweight due to malnutrition is not good for your brain either, although researchers have not fully elucidated the reasons for this. One possibility is that Alzheimer’s disease and frailty have a common cause; frailty may also be an early physical sign of Alzheimer’s disease that precedes the onset of memory impairment symptoms. Response: According to Dr. Maraganore, “If this is the case, avoiding frailty does not depend solely on a healthy diet or regular exercise (although the latter two are recommended). If a person becomes increasingly frail because he or she forgets to eat or cannot take care of himself or herself, then dementia may have already progressed to some degree. Frailty can also be a sign that other confounding factors exist, such as a person may be unable to eat healthily because of poor financial status or failure to receive adequate social support.” 3. Carotid artery disease How to increase the risk of AD: With the gradual formation of plaque in the inner walls of the carotid arteries that travel along the sides of your neck, the blood supply to the brain becomes more and more reduced. Restricted blood flow to any organ of the body can cause quite obvious problems, while poor blood flow to the carotid arteries can cause damage to critical brain cells or even death. Response: In severe cases, doctors may need to resort to surgery to reopen the blocked carotid artery. In other general cases, anti-plaque forming drugs may help clear the blockage and prevent a stroke. However, many people can regulate carotid artery disease by changing their lifestyle habits: including a nutritious diet, monitoring blood lipids and blood pressure, being physically active, and quitting smoking. 4. Hypertension How to increase the risk of AD: Similar to carotid artery disease, hypertension can increase the risk of AD by damaging blood vessels and subsequently affecting the blood supply to the brain. What to do: Dr. Maraganore recommends “monitoring blood pressure. About 70 million Americans have hypertension, but only about half will take steps to lower their blood pressure. The standard recommendation is to lower blood pressure to below 140/90 mmHg levels. The National Institutes of Health is currently studying whether lowering blood pressure to lower levels can significantly improve brain health. 5, low education level how to increase the risk of AD: Dr. Maraganore said that “the brain is like a muscle, not used for a long time, it will shrink. But unlike the abdominal muscles – because when you feel the abdominal muscles sagging, you can pull your chest in, but when you really start to lose brain power, you may never get it back. Learning promotes the establishment of new contacts in the brain, and acquiring new knowledge promotes the brain to maintain the newly established connections. Once your brain stops using it, then it is more susceptible to the range of damage that comes with normal aging.” The response: According to Dr. Maraganore, “Improving education is the most powerful tool we have to reduce the global prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (the overall education level of the U.S. population is higher than many developing countries, so physical activity is a key tool for the U.S.). Of course, the more years of education you have, the lower your risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Of course, few people can leave everything behind and go back to school, but there are other, more flexible ways to achieve continued re-education, such as taking dance lessons, teaching yourself guitar, or learning a new language.” 6. How depression increases the risk of AD: Dr. Maraganore says “Although a large number of studies have found that depression can increase the risk of dementia, the mechanisms involved have not been fully elucidated.” According to Dr. Snyder, “Possible reasons for this are that depressed patients often show inadequate stimulation of the brain from the isolation of living away from society, or that brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease directly contribute to the appearance of depressive symptoms.” The response: According to Snyder, “The primary measure is symptomatic treatment. Whether it’s through therapy, medication, lifestyle changes or a combination of techniques, the ultimate goal is to keep people with depression socially integrated and functionally active. If you’re still hesitant to speak up about your own emotional or mental health disorder, consider that this may be an important step you can take to preserve your brain health.” 7. How hyperhomocysteinemia increases AD risk: According to Dr. Snyder, “Homocysteine is an amino acid produced during the degradation of proteins. Its high blood levels, usually seen in people who consume too much red meat, appear to be associated with inflammation, which can make you more susceptible to cognitive decline.” The response: try to skip meat at least one day a week. Eating more green leafy vegetables, fruits and whole grain cereals may help lower homocysteine levels. 8, diabetes How to increase the risk of AD: Dr. Snyder said “fundamentally, diabetes can alter the body’s vascular function and affect the state of blood flow throughout the body (including the brain). But cutting-edge research suggests that the cause of Alzheimer’s disease may be related to insulin resistance in brain cells, so some see AD as so-called “type 3 diabetes,” which can lead to the accumulation of toxic proteins and the death of brain cells.” The response: According to the latest data from Harrison Interactive Health Day, about 29 million Americans have type 2 diabetes. Of those, just over 1 in 3 (35 percent) report that their blood sugar levels are somewhat controlled, and 5 percent report having taken no steps to lower their blood sugar. Even though continuous blood glucose monitoring sounds like a lot of work, avoiding diabetes complications is extremely important – depending on how well you manage your blood glucose under the guidance of your doctor. 9. Smoking How to increase your risk of AD: Among the range of damage you can get from smoking, memory damage is particularly important: damage to blood vessels from smoking can cause plaque formation and blood flow changes similar to those seen in heart patients. Response: If you still haven’t quit smoking, it’s worth adding Alzheimer’s disease to your list of reasons to quit immediately; it’s never too late to take action.