Contents:
- Medical Video: Alzheimer's Patients Can Deceive Others to the Distress of Their Caregiver (Support Podcast Health)
- The risk of dementia decreases in married couples
- How come?
- A healthy lifestyle helps prevent the risk of dementia increasing
Medical Video: Alzheimer's Patients Can Deceive Others to the Distress of Their Caregiver (Support Podcast Health)
Dementia is a collection of symptoms that occur due to decreased brain cognitive function caused by brain cell death. Dementia causes memory loss and a decrease in thinking, often referred to as senility, also results in changes in behavior and ability to carry out daily activities. At present more than 48 million people in the world experience dementia. Psst ... A study found that the risk of dementia in married couples was lower than that of single people. How come?
The risk of dementia decreases in married couples
In 2050 it is estimated that dementia sufferers have increased almost three-fold. Given this condition, researchers are trying to find risk factors that can be changed to slow or reduce the risk of dementia. Many studies suggest that marriage has many health benefits. Apparently, the reduction in the risk of dementia is one of the benefits of marriage, which has not been widely discussed.
A study is posted inJournal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry in 2017 found that the risk of dementia in single people was 42% higher than the risk of a married couple. This increased risk is also found in widowed women, even after decades of living alone. The risk of dementia in married women has increased by 20 percent. However, the widow who became a participant in this study was a woman whose husband had died. In divorced women, no differences in risk were found.
How come?
Marriage does not directly affect the risk of dementia. Married people usually have a healthier lifestyle, because there are couples who encourage healthy habits. Married people are also more often and better at undergoing social relations. According to data, married people have a higher life expectancy than those who are not married. Moreover, the physical health of single people is usually worse.
Another explanation that could be an alternative to the relationship of widows and dementia, namely the stress of losing a loved one will accelerate the occurrence of dementia. Stress has an adverse effect on dementia.
However, the results of this study do not necessarily mean that marriage is the best way to prevent dementia. More important than a marriage is the quality of the relationship between the two partners from the marriage itself, as well as good social relations with the family and the surrounding environment.
Meanwhile, it is healthy lifestyle changes that play a vital role in preventing decreased brain function due to dementia.
A healthy lifestyle helps prevent the risk of dementia increasing
The causes of certain types of dementia (especially Alzheimer's) are still unknown. So, a number of things can be done to reduce the risk of vascular dementia (vascular), namely:
- Healthy and balanced diet.
- Regular exercise.
- Maintain ideal body weight.
- Do not smoke.
- Avoid drinks that contain alcohol.
That means that both single and married people actually have a high chance of preventing the risk of dementia if they succeed in maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle throughout their lives.
