Top Ten for Scared Boomers

Worried about you noggin’ fading as you grow older?  I am. Having had a brain tumor, one of the things that keeps me up at night is the worry that I’ll even more susceptible to Alzheimer’s and other real and terrifying aging problems.

So I read with interest the recent article by Beth Howard in this month’s AARP magazine entitled “Age-Proof Your Brain”.

The goal, according to Gary Small, M.D., Director of the UCLA Longevity Center and coauthor of the The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program: Keep Your Brain Healthy for the Rest of your Life,  is to “stave it (i.e. Alzheimer’s) long enough so that you can live life without every suffering from the symptoms”. Sounds good to me.

Here’s the list.

1. Get Moving – exercise. (See 1/18/12 posting on Dr. Mike Evans video)
2. Pump Some Iron – literally, especially women.
3. Seek out new skills - Challenge your brain! (See 2/1/12 posting entitled “Hard is good…especially for brains)
4. “Say Omm” – chill.
5. Eat like a Greek. (Since I am part-Greek, this shouldn’t be all that hard.)
6. Spice it up – season your foods as many spices (black pepper, cinnamon, oregano, etc.) are high in antioxidants.
7. Find your purpose – discover your mission in life (a rather important question).
8. Get a social life – friends count.
9. Reduce your risks – the biggies like diabetes, obesity and hypertension as often associated with dementia.
10. Check vitamin deficiencies. According to the article older adults "don't always get all the nutrients they need from foods". Particularly concerning is B12 deficits which seem to be linked to smaller brains and scoring lower on "tests measuring thinking, reasoning, and memory".

Here’s the link for the full article http://www.aarp.org/health/brain-health/info-01-2012/boost-brain-health.html