In a new national poll, researchers found that many older Americans worry about declining brain health, especially if their loved ones have memory loss or dementia.
However, the main ways they use to prevent memory loss are taking supplements and doing puzzles.
These may not be the best evidence-based ways to prevent dementia.
It is important to talk to their doctors to find the most effective and scientific ways to protect their brain health.
The research was conducted by a team from the University of Michigan.
In the study, the team asked 1,028 adults aged 50 to 64 a range of brain health questions.
They found that nearly half of respondents to the National Poll on Healthy Aging felt they were likely to develop dementia as they age.
But recent research suggests that less than 20% of people who have reached age 65 will go on to lose cognitive ability from Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia or other brain conditions.
The team also found that only 5% of the entire group said they had talked with a healthcare provider about how to prevent memory problems.
The majority of people (73%) said they do crossword puzzles or brain games, or take supplements, to try to protect their brain abilities.
However, neither strategy has been shown to have a beneficial effect by major research studies.
The team suggests that older people need to seek advice from medical professionals to help them select the best prevention strategies backed by scientific evidence.
For example, they need to manage their blood pressure and blood sugar, getting more physical activity and better sleep, and stopping smoking.
The researchers also suggest that older people don’t need to focus on worrying about what might happen, or the products that promise to help.
Instead, they should focus on having a healthy diet, doing exercise regularly, sleeping well and controlling blood pressure.
One author of the study is Donovan Maust, M.D., M.S., a U-M geriatric psychiatrist.
The full report is published here.
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