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In new guidelines released Tuesday, the WHO released its first recommendations aimed at reducing the risk of dementia worldwide. They include regular exercise, lack of tobacco, alcohol consumption, maintenance of healthy blood pressure, and healthy eating, especially in the Mediterranean.
The international health agency also warned against the use of dietary supplements such as vitamins B and E in an effort to combat cognitive decline and dementia.
"While some people are unlucky and inherit a combination of genes that makes them very likely to develop dementia, many people have the opportunity to significantly reduce their risk by adopting a healthy lifestyle," Professor Tara Spiers -Jones, program of the Dementia Research Institute of the United Kingdom The senior director and deputy director of the Brain Sciences Center for Discovery of the University of Edinburgh told the Science Media Center.
"The WHO has reviewed the available evidence and made recommendations that some lifestyle modifications, especially the increase in exercise before the onset of cognitive symptoms, may reduce the risk of dementia, "she added.
"Other recommendations are based on weaker evidence, but may indicate that they do not increase risk or damage, and therefore can be safely recommended, although their impact on risks be less certain. "
The WHO said that there were 10 million new cases of dementia each year and that this figure is expected to triple by 2050. The disease is a major cause of disability and dependence in the elderly and "can devastate the lives of those affected, their caregivers and their families," said the WHO.
The disease also weighs heavily on the economy, with the cost of dementia care reaching $ 2 trillion a year by 2030, according to the WHO.
What is going and will not help
The 78-page report described what the WHO thought could and would not contribute to reducing the risk of dementia, which activists described as the greatest challenge of our generation in health.
"The Mediterranean diet is the most studied food approach, in general and in relation to cognitive function," the report says. "Several systematic reviews of observational studies have concluded that a strong adherence to the Mediterranean diet is associated with a reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer 's disease, but modest adherence does not occur. is not."
The report recommended appropriate management of weight, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia – unhealthy or unhealthy cholesterol – as measures to reduce the risk of dementia and cognitive decline.
Although the report points out that social participation and social support are closely linked to individual health and well-being, there is not enough evidence linking social activity to reducing the risk of dementia.
Similarly, cognitive training could be offered to the elderly, but the evidence linking it to a lower risk of dementia was "very low to low".
The report also warned against the use of supplements such as B vitamins, antioxidants, omega-3s and ginkgo.
"The negative recommendation that people do not use vitamins or supplements (unless they are needed for a clinical problem) is welcome, and hopefully that will save a lot of people wasting their money, "said Professor Tom Dening. , Director of the Center for Old Age and Dementia, Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham.
Experts said WHO's advice was comprehensive and sound, but some warned that evidence that these measures would reduce the risk of dementia is not always convincing.
"Keep doing what we know to be good for your overall physical and mental health, but understand that there is no evidence that these measures will reduce the risk of dementia," Robert Howard, a professor of psychiatry for the elderly at University College London. Center.
"Like many colleagues, I already tell my patients that what is good for their heart is probably for their brains."
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