Brain-training, exercise, diet keep elderly mental decline at bay

By Kate Kelland

LONDON (Reuters) - Older people at risk of dementia who follow advice on healthy eating, exercise and brain-training can slow down cognitive decline, particularly in their ability to organize and regulate thought processes, researchers said on Thursday.

In the first randomized controlled trial of its kind, the scientists found that two years of intensive guidance for people aged 60 to 77 led to some striking differences in executive function and processing.

While previous research has shown links between cognitive decline and factors such as diet, heart health and fitness, this trial was the first randomized controlled trial to show that addressing those risk factors might slow or prevent deterioration.

Researchers from Sweden's Karolinska Institute and from Finland's National Institute for Health and Welfare and University of Eastern Finland recruited 1,260 60- to 77-year-olds and randomly allocated half to an intensive guidance group and half to a control group given only routine health advice.

As reported in the Lancet, the intensive advice consisted of regular meetings over two years with doctors and other health professionals who gave comprehensive advice on eating healthily, exercising, engaging in brain training and having regular tests to check blood pressure and other risk factors.

After two years, overall scores on the Neuropsychological Test Battery were 25% higher in the intervention group than in the control group, and for some elements of the test, such as executive functioning and processing speed, they were dramatically higher, at 83% and 150%, respectively.

Miia Kivipelto, a Karolinska institute professor who co-led the study, said it showed how "an intensive program aimed at addressing these risk factors might be able to prevent cognitive decline in elderly people who are at risk of dementia."

The study participants will now be followed for at least seven years to see whether the diminished cognitive decline in the guidance group translates into fewer cases of dementia and Alzheimer's.

SOURCE: https://bit.ly/1B8jvoO

Lancet 2015.