You want your senior loved one to live a long and healthy life, which also means avoiding symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). It has been well-documented that making healthier dietary choices helps reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease.
What Is Alzheimer's Disease?
Alzheimer's Disease is the most common form of age-related dementia. It affects how a person thinks, remembers, communicates, and behaves. Symptoms usually develop gradually over time and can include:
- Difficulty remembering things from recent events
- Problems communicating or using words in sentences
- Becoming confused about where they are or what day it is
- Misplacing items more frequently than usual
- Further memory loss over time
Common causes of Alzheimer's Disease may be environmental factors such as high-stress levels or an unhealthy diet, but it can also be caused by genetics.
How Diet Affects Alzheimer's Disease
Studies have shown that the food we eat plays a major role in AD risk. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables, fish, healthy fats, and other key nutrients may protect against some of these risks. Eating processed foods or junk food, as well as saturated oils, can increase your senior loved one's chances of developing AD.
How Diet Affects Brain Health
Inflammation can be triggered by a poor diet, and this inflammation in the brain can worsen symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease. Oxidative stress is caused when there are too many free radicals in the body that cause damage to cells, including those in the brain.
Improving your senior loved one's dietary choices helps reduce oxidative stress. Additionally, controlling blood sugar levels by following a healthy diet may help lower their risk of developing AD. This is because high blood sugar levels can lead to an increase in plaque build-up in neuronal networks associated with memory formation.
Benefits of Changing Your Senior Loved One's Diet
Changing your senior loved one's diet to include healthy foods while avoiding processed or unhealthy food can provide many benefits that reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease, such as:
Improved Cognitive Function
Eating healthy food can help improve your senior loved one's cognitive function and slow the progression of Alzheimer's Disease. Foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids, like fish and nuts, help reduce inflammation in the brain and boost overall brain health.
Reduced Risk of Developing Alzheimer's Disease
To reduce the risk of your senior loved one developing Alzheimer's Disease, you can start by helping them improve their meal and food choices. A diet rich in antioxidants, such as fruits and vegetables, helps to protect brain cells from oxidation damage, which can lead to cognitive decline.
Senior Helpers Chesterton Helps Prepare Healthy Meals for Your Senior Loved One
It is imperative for your senior loved one's brain health to ensure they follow a healthy diet. Eating the right foods can help slow the progression of Alzheimer's Disease and reduce the risk of developing it by improving cognitive function in Valparaiso, Portage, Chesterton, Westville, Michigan City, Beverly Shores, Hobart, La Porte, and Lake County. At Senior Helpers Chesterton, we can help your senior loved one prepare healthy meals to improve brain health. Contact us today!