Lifestyle changes which might prevent dementia
LEADING NEUROSURGEON DR RAHUL JANDIAL TELLS ABOUT SIMPLE MEASURES THAT CAN HELP KEEP YOUR BRAIN HEALTHY
“It’s not about how much you eat, it’s about what you eat,” he adds. “These are the nutrients that are helpful and not difficult to adhere to, to help reduce our dementia risk. So the first and most fundamental thing is the mind diet – essentially the Mediterranean diet.”
Dr Jandial warns people should be wary about other so-called ‘brain foods’ however, as nutrients have to get past the gut wall, into the blood, and are then filtered by the liver before passing through the bloodbrain barrier. “Getting to the brain requires passing three barriers and the Mediterranean diet and its nutrients, whether it’s flavonoids, antioxidants or all of them, really is an effective strategy,” he says.
“So the first thing to do is to switch to more components of the mind diet. Occasional cheesecake or burger or chips isn’t an issue – it’s not the indulgences, it’s the regular things we put inside us that matter.”
STANDING AND WALKING
RIGHT now, with coronavirus on everybody’s minds, getting out and about for exercise may not be as straightforward as usual. Generally speaking though, when it’s safe to do so, being active is among the brain surgeon’s top tips for brain health.
“Until the coronavirus situation settles, stretch your legs in the garden, or exercise in the living room. I don’t mean becoming super-athletic, I mean simply standing and walking. The neurons and their supporting cells are floating in liquid – our brain is like densely-packed tissue in an aquarium. The tissue doesn’t physically touch, it gets very close to each other and sprays chemicals at each other called neurotransmitters.
“But there’s also something called brainderived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which the brain showers on itself, and the trigger for that is being vertical and moving. It doesn’t have to be a marathon; a 30-minute brisk walk gets you to a sweet spot where your brain is showering itself with BDNF – it’s a growth factor, like Miracle-Gro for the flesh of the brain. It’s something anybody can do, it’s free and can be just a micro-change in your week.”
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
“THE brain is thinking flesh. Life is brain training – you don’t need to buy an app or pay money – but you do need to learn. Engaging the brain, learning, reading, trying to learn a new instrument or language, even if you fail miserably, just the effort of trying to learn anything will engage wider swathes of your brain, and that serves as the engagement of those brain cells,” he says.
Even thinking about planning something for the future, like how you would run a company or keep up with friends, could count, he says: “Any time you’re thinking.
“But it has to challenge you just a bit. If it’s too easy, your brain doesn’t need to think and you’ll rely on habits. If it’s too hard, your brain won’t engage and you’ll say it’s impossible. So the trick is to find just that one level past your comfort zone. That’s the trigger for the brain to say it’s got to dial it up.”
SOCIALISE
AGAIN, socialising isn’t as easy right now, as the government advises everybody, particularly older age groups, to make avoiding nonessential contact and minimising the risk of coronavirus their top priority.
Now is the time to make use of our phones and laptops to keep in touch with friends we can’t see in person. And when the pandemic settles, we can embrace our social lives again.
“Socialising is also an advantage because it’s forcing you to think – about others, what you’re going to wear, where you’re going to go, etc. For people who are lonely, part of the risk is thinking less and thinking negative thoughts.”
TRY TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY HEART
“IF the arteries in your brain aren’t open, just like those in the heart, you can have small swathes of brain tissue wither, much like a garden that doesn’t get irrigated goes dry.
“Exercise helps with that, and good heart health with control of blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol is fundamental to keeping the plumbing of the brain open, so it’s getting the blood flow it wants. It’s an amazing amount of blood it demands – 20% of our blood flow goes to our 3lb brain.”
■ Life Lessons From A Brain Surgeon: The New Science And Stories Of The Brain by Dr Rahul Jandial is published by Penguin Life, £9.99.