According to the World Health Organization, there are about 47 million people with dementia in the world today. This number is projected to rise to 131 million by 2050. In other words, the number of long-livers on Earth is growing. But, unfortunately, the number of people suffering from senile dementia is also increasing.
What if I told you that up to a third of the world's dementia cases could be avoided if people watched their brain health?
Experts highlight 9 major risk factors that hinder the development of intellectual functions:
- hearing loss in middle age (45-60 years old) – 9% risk
- lack of high school education – 8%
- smoking – 5%
- ignoring first signs of depression – 4%
- 3% – lack of physical activity
- social isolation – 2%
- hypertension – 2%
- obesity – 1%
- type 2 diabetes – 1%
As you can see, these risk factors, 35% in total, can be reduced to "zero" with some efforts to control your health. The remaining 65% of the factors that cause dementia are, unfortunately, beyond a person's control.
The above list of risk factors shows that people with hearing loss are more likely to develop dementia. This fact is supported by a number of studies, according to which the more profound the degree of hearing loss, the higher the risk of developing the disease.
Why?
Scientists bring up 3 main factors that are a common platform for memory impairment and hearing loss:
- Social isolation. People with hearing loss tend to become isolated, limiting social contact as much as possible. Isolation from society is a risk factor for dementia, whether a person's hearing is normal or not.
- Excessive strain on the brain. A person with hearing problems is constantly stressed and focused on hearing and understanding every word. Effort that would normally be spent on remembering important things is spent on hearing and understanding what is being said. Such an imbalance affects the cognitive functions of the brain, including thinking and memory.
- Changes in brain structure. We don't hear with our ears, but with our brains. When the brain stops processing sound signals as a result of the development of hearing loss, changes begin to occur in the brain. Researchers say that older people have less gray matter in the brain in the parts that are responsible for hearing.
Leaving aside all this scientific reasoning, what can a hearing-impaired person do to prevent dementia?
Timely use of hearing aids can reduce this risk to the same level as in people without hearing loss.
This is where we have to go back to science again.
A new study has provided evidence that "hearing aids can be a minimally invasive and cost-effective means of mitigating the potential impact of hearing loss on the development of dementia".
The results of the study are described in an article in the scientific journal The Lancet Public Health.
In the course of the work, specialists analyzed the data of more than 437 thousand people, the average age of whom was 56 years. Their total follow-up time was 12 years. The participants were asked about their hearing condition and the use of hearing aids in case of their indications.
So, the researchers found that compared to participants with healthy hearing, people with hearing loss who did not use hearing aids had a 42 % higher risk of developing dementia from all causes. However, people with hearing loss who wore hearing aids had no higher risk of developing dementia.
The authors of the study emphasize that most people with hearing loss do not use hearing aids. Hearing loss can begin over the age of 40, and gradual cognitive decline before a diagnosis of dementia can last 20 to 25 years.
Researchers are calling for the earliest possible introduction of hearing aids among those who need them, as well as raising public awareness of the link between dementia and hearing loss.
In conclusion, here are some of my tips for maintaining mental health:
Keep learning! Any new mental activity creates new neural connections in the brain that can help the brain not develop dementia.
Communicate! All conversations with people stimulate the brain
Exercise for 30 minutes a day! Cardiovascular exercises are especially beneficial.
Eat lots of fruits and vegetables, greens, fish, olive oil and nuts!
Always take care of your hearing! Do not let your hearing loss worsen. If you suspect you have a hearing loss, seek help. A specialist in the field can help you understand how best to correct your hearing loss and keep your gray matter intact.