Can Alzheimer's Disease Be Prevented?

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsPromising Prevention ApproachesOther Strategies to ConsiderHow to Reduce Your RiskImportance of Early Detection

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Promising Prevention Approaches

Other Strategies to Consider

How to Reduce Your Risk

Importance of Early Detection

Close

Alzheimer’s disease is a brain condition that impacts memory, thinking, and behavior. It is a progressive and irreversible form ofdementiathat is the fifth leading cause of death for adults over 65.There is also no cure for the condition, which is why people often wonder if there is any way to preventAlzheimer’s disease.

So far, research has not found a definitive way to prevent or even delay the disease. Researchers have, however, uncovered a few different strategies that hold promise in the prevention of the condition, although more studies are needed to learn more.

At a Glance

What Might Help Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease

Increased Physical Activity

Exercise is linked to a wide range of both physical and mental health benefits, so it makes sense that research might implicate it as a possible preventative tool for Alzheimer’s. Exercise can also reduce the risk for other health conditions that often affect people as they age, includingdepression, falls, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

While exercise shows the most promise of all the prevention methods that researchers have explored, experts caution that there is not enough evidence to suggest that it can prevent Alzheimer’s. However, regular physical activity is associated with a lower risk of mild cognitive impairment as people age.

The National Institute on Aging defines mild cognitive impairment as thinking and memory problems that are more serious than the typical memory declines associated with the aging process.People with mild cognitive impairment may find themselves losing things often, forgetting appointments, and having more trouble coming up with words than other people in their age group.

Mild cognitive impairment is also often aprecursor to the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. People over the age of 65 who have mild cognitive impairment have a 10% to 20% chance of developing Alzheimer’s over a one-year period.

While the research is still out on whether exercise might have a prescriptive benefit for preventing Alzheimer’s, thereisevidence about the consequences of not getting regular physical activity. Less active people are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

According to one study published in theJournal of Alzheimer’s Disease, being sedentary raises the risk of dementia as much asgenetic factors. In other words, not exercising wipes out any genetic benefits you might have.

Controlling Blood Pressure

Managing high blood pressure is important for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke, but it may also help prevent Alzheimer’s disease. Past studies have found a link between high blood pressure and dementia.

While research is still ongoing, some existing research suggests that controlling blood pressure alone isn’t a sure-fire prevention method. In one clinical trial, lowering blood pressure did not significantly impact dementia risk.

As with studies on exercise, however, the trial did find that reducing blood pressure lowered the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment.

Cognitive Training

Cognitive training, also referred to as brain training, involves strategies designed to maintain or improve cognitive abilities, including memory, processing speed, and reasoning skills. This type of training has been explored to improve mental skills, but it also shows some promise in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.

One study found that cognitive training focused on improving processing speed was associated with decreased dementia ten years later.

Regular daily activities that utilize cognitive skills also appear to be beneficial. In one study of 2,000 adults over the age of 70, participating in activities like using computers, playing games, and socializing with other people was linked to a lower risk of mild cognitive impairment in the four years after.

Regardless of its potential in the prevention of Alzheimer’s, research does support the use of such interventions to help aging adults keep their minds and mental skills sharp.

All participants reported improvements in their ability to perform daily activities for as long as 10 years after this training. This training helped older adults with practical skills, such as remembering to take their medications.

In addition to getting enough exercise, controlling blood pressure, and keeping your brain active, some evidence suggests that a few other factors may also play a role in preventing Alzheimer’s-related dementia.

Diet

Some evidence suggests that following a Mediterranean diet may prevent Alzheimer’s. The diet may also help slow the progression of the illness.

The MIND Diet

AMediterranean dietis rich in fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, nuts, legumes, whole grains, fish, and healthy oils. It also includes moderate amounts of dairy and eggs.

The MIND diet (Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) combines elements of a Mediterranean diet with the DASH diet. DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is an approach to eating that can help reduce blood pressure.The MIND diet may be beneficial since it also helps lower blood pressure, which may also help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

The MIND diet limits the amount of sugar, butter, margarine, fried food, cheese, and red meats that people consume. It instead encourages people to primarily eat from the following food groups:

One study suggests that even moderate adherence to the MIND diet may help reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. The study found that those who followed the diet for four and a half years experienced a 53% reduction in theirrisk for Alzheimer’s diseasecompared to people who didn’t follow the diet.

Sleep

Sleep plays a pivotal role in mental and physical well-being, and some evidence indicates that getting enough rest might help reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Sleep has an important impact on normal memory functioning throughout life.

Studies also suggest that poor sleep increases the risk of developing dementia.Researchers suspect that sleep helps prevent deposits of beta-amyloid proteins from building up in the brain. This protein is what clumps together to form the plaques in the brain that are characteristic of Alzheimer’s.These proteins form during the day, but sleep allows these substances to be flushed out of the brain.

Research suggests that getting better sleep may reduce the risk of developing the condition among people who have an increased genetic risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Do Supplements Help?While there has been considerable interest in the question of whether vitamins or supplements might reduce Alzheimer’s risk, the evidence thus far has pointed to no such benefit.

Do Supplements Help?

While there has been considerable interest in the question of whether vitamins or supplements might reduce Alzheimer’s risk, the evidence thus far has pointed to no such benefit.

The National Institute on Aging recommends the following lifestyle changes to help decrease your risk of developing problems with memory and thinking as you age:

While more research is needed to understand better what can be done to prevent Alzheimer’s, one important thing you can do is be aware of theearly symptoms of the condition. While it is an understandably upsettingdiagnosis, early detection may help people better manage the progression of the disease.

An early diagnosis can:

Researchers suggest that the earlier people are diagnosed, the more they stand to benefit from bothpharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments.There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, but medications are available that can improve memory and reduce confusion. Participating in clinical trials is also an option for some individuals.

RecapWhile there is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, recognizing the early signs means you can start using interventions early. This doesn’t mean you can reverse the condition’s onset, but lifestyle changes and medications may slow its course, improve functioning, and allow for greater quality of life.

Recap

While there is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, recognizing the early signs means you can start using interventions early. This doesn’t mean you can reverse the condition’s onset, but lifestyle changes and medications may slow its course, improve functioning, and allow for greater quality of life.

Takeaways

It is important to remember that each preventative method may help some individuals more than others. Because there are multiple risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, people likely need to utilize more than one strategy to reduce their risk.

The most effective way to potentially prevent or delay the onset of this devastating brain condition is to focus on long-term lifestyle changes, including getting regular exercise, managing your blood pressure, keeping your mind active, and following a healthy diet.

Can Alzheimer’s Disease Be Prevented?

16 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Alzheimer’s disease.Committee on Preventing Dementia and Cognitive Impairment, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Health and Medicine Division, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Way Forward. Leshner AI, Landis S, Stroud C, Downey A, eds. National Academies Press; 2017. doi:10.17226/24782National Institute on Aging.What is mild cognitive impairment?Fenesi B, Fang H, Kovacevic A, Oremus M, Raina P, Heisz JJ.Physical exercise moderates the relationship of apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype and dementia risk: A population-based study.J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(1):297-303. doi:10.3233/JAD-160424National Institute on Aging.High blood pressure is linked to cognitive decline.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) study.Edwards JD, Xu H, Clark DO, Guey LT, Ross LA, Unverzagt FW.Speed of processing training results in lower risk of dementia.Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions. 2017;3(4):603-611. doi:10.1016/j.trci.2017.09.002(Krell-Roesch J, Vemuri P, Pink A, Roberts RO, Stokin GB, Mielke MM, Christianson TJ, Knopman DS, Petersen RC, Kremers WK, Geda YE.Association between mentally stimulating activities in late life and the outcome of incident mild cognitive impairment, with an analysis of the APOE ε4 genotype.JAMA Neurol. 2017;74(3):332-338. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2016.3822da Silva TBL, Bratkauskas JS, Barbosa MEC, et al.Long-term studies in cognitive training for older adults: A systematic review.Dement Neuropsychol. 2022;16(2):135-152. doi:10.1590/1980-5764-DN-2021-0064Morris MC, Tangney CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Barnes LL, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT.MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging.Alzheimers Dement. 2015 Sep;11(9):1015-22. doi:10.1016/j.jalz.2015.04.011Robbins R, Quan SF, Weaver MD, Bormes G, Barger LK, Czeisler CA.Examining sleep deficiency and disturbance and their risk for incident dementia and all-cause mortality in older adults across 5 years in the United States. Aging. 2021;13(3):3254-3268. doi:10.18632/aging.202591Nedergaard M, Goldman SA.Glymphatic failure as a final common pathway to dementia.Science. 2020 Oct 2;370(6512):50-56. doi:10.1126/science.abb8739Zhang Y, Ren R, Yang L, et al.Sleep in Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of polysomnographic findings.Transl Psychiatry. 2022;12(1):136. doi:10.1038/s41398-022-01897-yNational Institute on Aging.What do we know about diet and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease?National Institute on Aging.Assessing risk for Alzheimer’s disease.Rasmussen J, Langerman H.Alzheimer’s disease - Why we need early diagnosis.Degener Neurol Neuromuscul Dis. 2019;9:123-130. doi:10.2147/DNND.S228939

16 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Alzheimer’s disease.Committee on Preventing Dementia and Cognitive Impairment, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Health and Medicine Division, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Way Forward. Leshner AI, Landis S, Stroud C, Downey A, eds. National Academies Press; 2017. doi:10.17226/24782National Institute on Aging.What is mild cognitive impairment?Fenesi B, Fang H, Kovacevic A, Oremus M, Raina P, Heisz JJ.Physical exercise moderates the relationship of apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype and dementia risk: A population-based study.J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(1):297-303. doi:10.3233/JAD-160424National Institute on Aging.High blood pressure is linked to cognitive decline.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) study.Edwards JD, Xu H, Clark DO, Guey LT, Ross LA, Unverzagt FW.Speed of processing training results in lower risk of dementia.Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions. 2017;3(4):603-611. doi:10.1016/j.trci.2017.09.002(Krell-Roesch J, Vemuri P, Pink A, Roberts RO, Stokin GB, Mielke MM, Christianson TJ, Knopman DS, Petersen RC, Kremers WK, Geda YE.Association between mentally stimulating activities in late life and the outcome of incident mild cognitive impairment, with an analysis of the APOE ε4 genotype.JAMA Neurol. 2017;74(3):332-338. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2016.3822da Silva TBL, Bratkauskas JS, Barbosa MEC, et al.Long-term studies in cognitive training for older adults: A systematic review.Dement Neuropsychol. 2022;16(2):135-152. doi:10.1590/1980-5764-DN-2021-0064Morris MC, Tangney CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Barnes LL, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT.MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging.Alzheimers Dement. 2015 Sep;11(9):1015-22. doi:10.1016/j.jalz.2015.04.011Robbins R, Quan SF, Weaver MD, Bormes G, Barger LK, Czeisler CA.Examining sleep deficiency and disturbance and their risk for incident dementia and all-cause mortality in older adults across 5 years in the United States. Aging. 2021;13(3):3254-3268. doi:10.18632/aging.202591Nedergaard M, Goldman SA.Glymphatic failure as a final common pathway to dementia.Science. 2020 Oct 2;370(6512):50-56. doi:10.1126/science.abb8739Zhang Y, Ren R, Yang L, et al.Sleep in Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of polysomnographic findings.Transl Psychiatry. 2022;12(1):136. doi:10.1038/s41398-022-01897-yNational Institute on Aging.What do we know about diet and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease?National Institute on Aging.Assessing risk for Alzheimer’s disease.Rasmussen J, Langerman H.Alzheimer’s disease - Why we need early diagnosis.Degener Neurol Neuromuscul Dis. 2019;9:123-130. doi:10.2147/DNND.S228939

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Alzheimer’s disease.Committee on Preventing Dementia and Cognitive Impairment, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Health and Medicine Division, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Way Forward. Leshner AI, Landis S, Stroud C, Downey A, eds. National Academies Press; 2017. doi:10.17226/24782National Institute on Aging.What is mild cognitive impairment?Fenesi B, Fang H, Kovacevic A, Oremus M, Raina P, Heisz JJ.Physical exercise moderates the relationship of apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype and dementia risk: A population-based study.J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(1):297-303. doi:10.3233/JAD-160424National Institute on Aging.High blood pressure is linked to cognitive decline.National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) study.Edwards JD, Xu H, Clark DO, Guey LT, Ross LA, Unverzagt FW.Speed of processing training results in lower risk of dementia.Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions. 2017;3(4):603-611. doi:10.1016/j.trci.2017.09.002(Krell-Roesch J, Vemuri P, Pink A, Roberts RO, Stokin GB, Mielke MM, Christianson TJ, Knopman DS, Petersen RC, Kremers WK, Geda YE.Association between mentally stimulating activities in late life and the outcome of incident mild cognitive impairment, with an analysis of the APOE ε4 genotype.JAMA Neurol. 2017;74(3):332-338. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2016.3822da Silva TBL, Bratkauskas JS, Barbosa MEC, et al.Long-term studies in cognitive training for older adults: A systematic review.Dement Neuropsychol. 2022;16(2):135-152. doi:10.1590/1980-5764-DN-2021-0064Morris MC, Tangney CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Barnes LL, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT.MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging.Alzheimers Dement. 2015 Sep;11(9):1015-22. doi:10.1016/j.jalz.2015.04.011Robbins R, Quan SF, Weaver MD, Bormes G, Barger LK, Czeisler CA.Examining sleep deficiency and disturbance and their risk for incident dementia and all-cause mortality in older adults across 5 years in the United States. Aging. 2021;13(3):3254-3268. doi:10.18632/aging.202591Nedergaard M, Goldman SA.Glymphatic failure as a final common pathway to dementia.Science. 2020 Oct 2;370(6512):50-56. doi:10.1126/science.abb8739Zhang Y, Ren R, Yang L, et al.Sleep in Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of polysomnographic findings.Transl Psychiatry. 2022;12(1):136. doi:10.1038/s41398-022-01897-yNational Institute on Aging.What do we know about diet and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease?National Institute on Aging.Assessing risk for Alzheimer’s disease.Rasmussen J, Langerman H.Alzheimer’s disease - Why we need early diagnosis.Degener Neurol Neuromuscul Dis. 2019;9:123-130. doi:10.2147/DNND.S228939

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Alzheimer’s disease.

Committee on Preventing Dementia and Cognitive Impairment, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Health and Medicine Division, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Way Forward. Leshner AI, Landis S, Stroud C, Downey A, eds. National Academies Press; 2017. doi:10.17226/24782

National Institute on Aging.What is mild cognitive impairment?

Fenesi B, Fang H, Kovacevic A, Oremus M, Raina P, Heisz JJ.Physical exercise moderates the relationship of apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype and dementia risk: A population-based study.J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(1):297-303. doi:10.3233/JAD-160424

National Institute on Aging.High blood pressure is linked to cognitive decline.

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) study.

Edwards JD, Xu H, Clark DO, Guey LT, Ross LA, Unverzagt FW.Speed of processing training results in lower risk of dementia.Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions. 2017;3(4):603-611. doi:10.1016/j.trci.2017.09.002

(Krell-Roesch J, Vemuri P, Pink A, Roberts RO, Stokin GB, Mielke MM, Christianson TJ, Knopman DS, Petersen RC, Kremers WK, Geda YE.Association between mentally stimulating activities in late life and the outcome of incident mild cognitive impairment, with an analysis of the APOE ε4 genotype.JAMA Neurol. 2017;74(3):332-338. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2016.3822

da Silva TBL, Bratkauskas JS, Barbosa MEC, et al.Long-term studies in cognitive training for older adults: A systematic review.Dement Neuropsychol. 2022;16(2):135-152. doi:10.1590/1980-5764-DN-2021-0064

Morris MC, Tangney CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Barnes LL, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT.MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging.Alzheimers Dement. 2015 Sep;11(9):1015-22. doi:10.1016/j.jalz.2015.04.011

Robbins R, Quan SF, Weaver MD, Bormes G, Barger LK, Czeisler CA.Examining sleep deficiency and disturbance and their risk for incident dementia and all-cause mortality in older adults across 5 years in the United States. Aging. 2021;13(3):3254-3268. doi:10.18632/aging.202591

Nedergaard M, Goldman SA.Glymphatic failure as a final common pathway to dementia.Science. 2020 Oct 2;370(6512):50-56. doi:10.1126/science.abb8739

Zhang Y, Ren R, Yang L, et al.Sleep in Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of polysomnographic findings.Transl Psychiatry. 2022;12(1):136. doi:10.1038/s41398-022-01897-y

National Institute on Aging.What do we know about diet and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease?

National Institute on Aging.Assessing risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

Rasmussen J, Langerman H.Alzheimer’s disease - Why we need early diagnosis.Degener Neurol Neuromuscul Dis. 2019;9:123-130. doi:10.2147/DNND.S228939

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?