Brain Fitness

Can it Prevent or Delay Dementia Symptoms?

Brain fitness is something that we have wondered about. Would participating in mind stimulating activities decrease or delay the dementia symptoms in our Mom? If we challenged our minds could we prevent ourselves from developing the disease?

The evidence from several studies we found seems to suggest that developing the brain through continual learning can delay the onset of dementia symptoms if not entirely prevent them. But when we consider that a man with a brilliant mind like Ronald Reagan developed Alzheimer’s Disease perhaps any attempt to strengthen our minds would be in vain, but it did make us wonder.

Brain fitness is the idea that if you exercise your mind the same way you would exercise your physical body and give it proper conditions for growth like good nutrition, rest, low stress levels, etc. that you can strengthen it, and a stronger mind is more resistant to dementia.

It is interesting that building your “mind muscles” also involves proper nutrition and adequate rest just as building your physical muscles does. In fact, increasing brain fitness also involves getting enough physical exercise.

Our Mom went through a time shortly after she started exhibiting dementia symptoms where she would play solitaire with a deck of cards. She would play the game over and over again and always had either a deck of cards ready to play or a game in progress next to her chair. We don’t know if she was trying to strengthen her mind or if she just suddenly enjoyed playing the game, but is was probably good for her to at least occupy her time in a way that required her to think.

In studying the mind you learn about neurons and synapses and dendrites that form between neurons—like pathways that tell your mind what to think and how to retrieve certain bodies of knowledge that have been tucked away over time. The more pathways your mind has to any given body of knowledge the easier it will be for you to recall that information and effectively put it to use. We really found it to be a fascinating study.

But when it comes to brain fitness and its affect on dementia some studies show that training the brain makes no difference in the development or delay of symptoms and some studies suggest that continuing education can delay or even prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s.

We tend to prescribe to the “use it or lose it” philosophy. Just like a physical muscle will wither away and become useless unless it is exercised and properly cared for, so too, will the brain. We think that the more you learn, the more information and skills you will have available to conquer whatever you face in life, whether it is being a caregiver for a dementia patient or dealing with dementia symptoms yourself.

Any kind of study in a subject that is new to you or at a more difficult level than you have studied before can increase your memory, ability to reason and the rate at which you process information. So find ways to stimulate your brain and find ways to help your care recipient stimulate theirs.

The activity can be as simple as doing the crossword puzzle in the morning paper or as difficult as learning a computer programming language. Whatever interests you is probably a good place to start, but remember to stimulate both sides of your brain.

If you enjoy Sudoku and are really good at it then learn something that is more on the creative side like oil painting, but if you are a dancer tackle a subject like physics. Developing both sides of the brain will not only provide balance in your thinking and reasoning abilities, but it will also build stronger connections or pathways between the knowledge stored in brain. Any increase in these pathways can improve your brain fitness.

Alzheimer’s victims tend to respond well to art and music therapy. Try to incorporate these activities into your schedule. Our Mom responded really well to the hymns that she remembered from her childhood and early adult years.

In addition to learning new things also take time to do physical exercise. Be sure to check with your and your care recipient’s doctors first to be sure that you are able to be physically active. Something as simple as a walk around the block, gardening or stretching exercises can add physical activity to your day and help to improve your brain fitness.

Also pay attention to nutrition and stress management. Consult a nutritionist and/or a counselor if these are difficult areas to handle.

One evening we had some friends visiting and we all decided to play Texas Hold ‘Em. Mom participated along with the rest of and, like most of the rest of us, lost every hand, but she really seemed to enjoy herself. We don’t know if she stimulated any kind of higher level thinking skills trying to tell the difference between a two of a kind and a royal flush, but it was obvious that just being included in the family fun staved off many of her Alzheimer’s symptoms at least for a couple of hours.

Perhaps the greatest benefit for a dementia patient in doing mind building exercises or playing brain games is in the social interaction that makes them feel like they are being useful or normal.

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