I have always had a very low blood pressure, below what's considered "normal." I never feel dizzy when standing up, though. Is this still a risk factor for dementia?
Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
21–30 of 82 posts
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#22Yes. The time to fix your health is now. Any unhealthy habits put time on the biological clock, and they'll just get harder to undo later. This is true if you're 20, 40, or 60. Plaque even starts building up on the arteries of healthy teenagers. It all adds up. But don't read this and panic or beat yourself up, that's a waste of energy. That's choosing the punishment instead of the fix. Instead, quietly start doing o…
I just watched this video by a doctor, and his point was every one of his ER patients had a problem that was years in the making (except for 1, a little girl who swallowed a battery)
I Saw 120 Patients This Week. Here's Why They Were Actually Sick. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiVKh97rJsg
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#23The work of Dr. Rick Johnson is perhaps relevant. He links the effects of fructose on the mitochondria, which then affects the neurons in the brain, over time. This hypothesis makes much more sense to me when you think to the associated diseases (diabetes, heart disease etc...) You can get a overview of his research on this podcast (approx 75min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59Oje6n2JLU
In the context of TFA, what hypothesis makes much more sense to you than what alternative?
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#24The importance of walking can not be overstated. Walking for 30 mins every other day will dramatically improve your life if you are sedentary. If you can't do 30 minutes, start with 15.
Had an uncle who swore by this. He died at 57 of ALS. That obviously doesn't mean walking is bad, I just mean to point out that even those people who believe in it as a silver bullet, can be hit with something totally out of left field. Life is really quite brutish and short. You can do all the right things, and die early. All the wrong things, and live a long time. Take care of yourself for sure, but also find a bal…
You can do everything right and get taken out by an accident. So far I've dodged a loose trailer that came off next to me going the opposite direction, a rock dislodged by a marmot from the cliff above, two drunk drivers drifting towards me, a city bus turning towards me on an icy road, a few other left turning drivers who didn't see me in a crosswalk (I now carry a high intensity pulsing flashlight for crossing at intersections) and two near misses when a gust upset my glider.
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#25You are going to die, and it's a painful ugly business. The right to die humanely is the single most under-regarded and under-valued aspect of life hygiene.
Fortunately some jurisdictions are death wise enough to provide humane means that we can request from a health practitioner.
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
Had an uncle who swore by this. He died at 57 of ALS. That obviously doesn't mean walking is bad, I just mean to point out that even those people who believe in it as a silver bullet, can be hit with something totally out of left field. Life is really quite brutish and short. You can do all the right things, and die early. All the wrong things, and live a long time. Take care of yourself for sure, but also find a bal…
You can do everything right and get taken out by an accident. So far I've dodged a loose trailer that came off next to me going the opposite direction, a rock dislodged by a marmot from the cliff above, two drunk drivers drifting towards me, a city bus turning towards me on an icy road, a few other left turning drivers who didn't see me in a crosswalk (I now carry a high intensity pulsing flashlight for crossing at i…
I was almost taken out by two rogue kayaks being towed behind an oblivious truck driver.
If I get taken out, I want it to be while I'm saving kids from an angry bear, not something stupid like ^
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#27You are going to die, and it's a painful ugly business. The right to die humanely is the single most under-regarded and under-valued aspect of life hygiene.
Fortunately some jurisdictions are death wise enough to provide humane means that we can request from a health practitioner.
That cuts both ways though, and I have quite direct knowledge of how this has been misused in really gross ways. But that said, I would still bias towards more freedom than less, and hope that we can get a handle on the more extreme cases.
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
IMO developing good sleep hygiene is by far the most important habit to cultivate. It has lots of benefits, but the most important one is it replenishes your willpower. If you're trying to develop other healthy habits, it's 10x harder if you haven't slept well.
It's also the easiest to implement, imo. But there is a tradeoff: fewer waking hours during your best years cognitively for more years when you're older...
Poor sleep is a widespread problem and very few of those people are cognitively doing it intentionally as some sort of "tradeoff". The number of people "grinding on a startup" is tiny compared to the population of people who suffer from this problem. Instead it's caused by things like general anxiety, too much screen time before bed, or not having consistent sleep schedules. And other health related reasons that compound the problem.
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#29The importance of walking can not be overstated. Walking for 30 mins every other day will dramatically improve your life if you are sedentary. If you can't do 30 minutes, start with 15.
Had an uncle who swore by this. He died at 57 of ALS. That obviously doesn't mean walking is bad, I just mean to point out that even those people who believe in it as a silver bullet, can be hit with something totally out of left field. Life is really quite brutish and short. You can do all the right things, and die early. All the wrong things, and live a long time. Take care of yourself for sure, but also find a bal…
Fine. But walking is also just kind of nice and unobtrusive for most people. I'd understand if you were replying to someone telling you to do strength training, but I'd argue walking is just pleasant.
Re: Midlife Vascular Risk Burden and Dementia-Free Survival Years
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think the commenter meant such that as much as possible of your diet consists of healthy rather than unhealthy food — NOT as great a quantity as you can take in.
I know, I took the literal meaning because I know some do live by that.
Fair enough! Just because I don't doesn't mean I shouldn't broaden my scope.