What You Can Do To Decrease Your Risk For Dementia

In an article by Robert Preidt for MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, a new study has shown that "it may be possible to lower the incidence of dementia by reducing rates of diabetes and depression, boosting education, and increasing fruit and vegetable consumption."

The exact cause of dementia is still unknown but scientists in the study believe that their are greater risks when you have a history of depression, a diet rich in sugar, alcohol consumption, tobacco use, less of an education and vascular problems. The study of 1,433 healthy people over 65 living in the south of France showed that reducing or eliminating any of the above significantly reduced their chances of contracting dementia.

Eliminating depression decreased your risk by 10%. Increasing education improved your odds of having dementia by 18%.