7. Certain Health Conditions and Diseases
There are certain diseases and health issues that can increase your risk of getting dementia. There are several risk factors of this kind, but we’ll stick to the most common.
Cardiovascular disease, or CVD, damages the heart, making it hard for blood to flow around the body. But heart diseases can also make a person more likely to develop dementia. In other words, most risk factors for CVD are also risk factors for mental diseases.
The most important CVD risk factors that can increase the probability of getting dementia are high blood cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, being overweight and physically unfit, and increasingly blocked and stiff arteries (known as atherosclerosis).
These risks are most strongly associated with vascular dementia, which is caused by impaired blood flow to the brain.
Hearing loss can also make a person more likely to deal with dementia later in life. There may be a couple of reasons for this. One would be that people struggling with hearing issues are more likely to forego social situations and become more isolated. This can reduce their cognitive reserve.
Another reason is that the effort of straining to hear may make it difficult for other mental processes to function properly. Finally, another reason is that certain health issues that cause dementia can also affect hearing.
Traumatic brain injuries can also increase the likelihood of developing mental disorders. This happens because severe brain injuries can trigger a process in the brain where the substances that cause dementia build up around the injured area. Even if the traumatic episode happens when a person is young, it can still bump up their risk of developing mental disorders.
The following book is a good resource if you want to learn more about dementia and its risk factors: DEMENTIA Types, Symptoms, & Risk Factors: Dementia Guide for Patients, Families, Caregivers, & Medical Professionals
You may also want to read: Sleep: 7 Reasons Why You Should Prioritize It
10 Responses
88 + still learning. I have found the internet has More info. than just the woke info. and childish games with all the bad over the world on display as it happens. I am still going even with cervical spinal stenosis. Emotional stress increases with this problem. Peop[le need to go through the 7 Reasons early in life. More articles on that rather than trans gender and all the rest of the stuff they focus on. If they don’t they wont have a good life to do what it isthey want to do.
Great reply! I agree with you. Two years ago I had aortic valve replacement. Now I have lumbar spinal stenosis and it so impedes my ability to move….and to sleep. Other than that, I don’t feel’ my age. Not sure it that’s a detriment or not. But it’s certainly eye-opening. Dear Lord, just don’t let me lose my mind.
Here for the woke info!
I had brain bleed and ever since, I have issues
How come you didnt mention lack of sleep is also a risk factor?
I know that’s my biggest issues. 3-4
Hr of fragmented sleep for over 30yrs. I know it’s gonna do me in.
Wanting to know more.
I want to know more about the disease
Thank you for sharing
Studying Spanish and relearning Hebrew, taking lessons on my fourth musical instrument after a long time of not having time to play music (while raising children and pursuing a career), have all contributed to my feeling of youthfulness, not to mention regular physical activity, regular sleep and eating habits, and a positive attitude bolstered by my abiding faith in Jesus Christ.