This is how you ‘work’ with dementia. The key to what you usually do while sitting

Dementia (dementia) is most often associated with memory loss. Its devastating influence, however, is much greater. Dementia changes the way you speak, think, and it affects your behavior. These are all signals that the brain is getting weaker and weaker. There is no single cause of dementia, and there is no “cure” for dementia. More and more is known for what increases and reduces the risk of its occurrence. Recently, scientists discovered that it matters what… we do when we sit. For some, this will be bad news.

1. Dementia is a group of symptoms that are associated with progressive deterioration in brain function
2. It is known that exercise can protect the brain from the irreversible changes associated with dementia
3. Now scientists have identified an important risk factor for dementia that can be modified. It’s passive sitting (e.g. watching TV)
4. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

Dementia is not a disease. What are we really talking about?

First, some important information about dementia itself. Although we associate it mainly with old age, it is not its natural stage. Dementia is also not one particular disease. It is a general term that covers a wide range of conditions where there is progressive deterioration in brain function (including Alzheimer’s disease, which is responsible for most cases of dementia).

The common denominator of these disorders are changes in the central nervous system and their consequences, mainly a decrease in thinking skills. This, in turn, results in difficulties in carrying out everyday activities, which eventually leads to the loss of independence, condemning to the constant care of others.

The rest of the text below the video.

There are factors in the development of dementia that we cannot control. This includes advancing age or genes (although they do not themselves cause dementia, rather in conjunction with a particular lifestyle). On the other hand, we can modify many elements of risk. Scientists are still exploring this issue. Another discovery has recently appeared. It turns out that what we do when we spend time… sitting down also affects our risk of developing dementia. Depending on this, the probability may be higher or lower.

The type of activity while sitting has an impact on the risk of dementia

The scientists announced their findings on August 22 in the “National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America” ​​(PNAS), the scientific journal of the American National Academy of Sciences. The study analyzed the medical records of 146 participants in the British Biobank. All of the former were older than 651 years of age, and none of the volunteers had been diagnosed with dementia at the time of recruitment. For almost 60 years, scientists have been tracking how much they use a TV or computer. At the end of follow-up, 12 people had developed dementia.

After detailed analysis, researchers found that the type of activity we take while sitting influences our risk of developing dementia. In other words, we can spend this time “passively” (eg watching TV) or “actively”, ie mentally engaged (eg using a computer). In the former, the risk of dementia may be greater, in the latter, it may be lower.

This distinction is valuable, Dr. Mats Hallgren of the Karolinska Institute (Sweden), who was not involved in the study, comments in Medical News Today. As he emphasizes, “Our brains work in different ways during mentally active and passive sedentary behavior.” «We know, for example, that the brain uses glucose differently when we are mentally active (reading, solving puzzles / problems, etc.) compared to watching TV passively. Other factors are also important – computer use can include social activities that affect cognitive and mental health, »explains Dr Mats Hallgren.

Passive sitting and dementia. Important Notes

The researchers emphasize that the study was observational and as such did not show that one or the other type of ‘sedentary lifestyle’ increases or reduces the risk of dementia. It simply states that they are related to the different outcomes you see in the data. «There is evidence that shows the direct physiological influence of sitting on aspects of brain function. We believe a good starting point is that cognitive engagement while sitting can counteract some of these effects, »notes one of the study’s authors, Dr. David Raichlan of the University of Southern California. “I think these are the foundations for future work,” he admits.

How, then, to be “active”, preferring a sedentary lifestyle? Reading, listening to the radio, playing cards, solving crosswords are just examples. “They are all more cognitively engaging than watching TV passively and are also associated with benefits for the brain,” says Dr. David Raichlan.

Finally, an important note. The above study absolutely does not suggest that physical activity is less important. It is known that exercise positively influences the work of the brain and protects it against dementia (it is estimated that this reduces the risk by 30 to even 80%). This study simply identified one important modifiable risk factor for dementia – passive sitting.