Dementia-An awful disease

I often think back to the difficult and terrible period of time when I watched my mother battle dementia. To this day, when I speak to someone who has cared for a loved one with dementia, a recurring theme repeats itself. “I don’t know where to turn,” “I cannot get any assistance,” “there are no resources.” Six years after her passing, this is still too common and so very wrong. Now we compound this issue with the current pandemic of COVID-19. So, first off, what is dementia?

Dementia is a disease focused in the brain and can occur for many reasons. Poor diet, lack of exercise, bad habits such as smoking, strokes, etc., all increase the risk of developing some form of dementia So, does this mean if we have participated in these bad habits, that we are doomed? Absolutely not!!!! What we can do is make some positive behavioral changes.

When we begin to get active, to monitor our diets, when we make all attempts to grow and keep our minds active, we are heading in the right direction. The Mediterranean Diet is one of the best diets recommended to maintain good health because of the balance. If you need help with developing menus, check out our registered dietician contact information on our services section of the website. When we reduce stress, create more harmony, and really devote quality time to self-care, we minimize the risk of disease.

So, today, as I remember some of the terrible issues dementia patients suffer through, I wanted to share ways to try and create better health and wellness. The minimum recommendation for physical activity is around 150 minutes per week. This is simply 30 minutes a day/5 days a week. We all have at least 30 minutes to take a brisk walk, to jump on the elliptical (or any exercise machine we prefer), we can take a few minutes to quiet the mind before bed by reading 10 short pages each night. We can make a concerted effort to drink more water and to make our water even more beneficial by adding fruits such as lemons, berries, or cucumbers and herbs like mint.

Let us remember, that the cost of poor health is disease; diseases such as cancer, dementia, heart disease, diabetes. The cost of good health is staying active, not smoking, not excessively partaking of alcohol, watching our dietary intake of fats and unhealthy calories, watching our weight, reading, doing puzzles, etc. I’m not sure where you stand, but I can honestly say that eating healthy, exercising, and forcing myself to be better sounds so much more fun than the cost of poor health. Remember, stay healthy, stay hydrated and let’s create good health habits now for a better quality of life later.