This week, the Washington Post published a major article on brain health featuring Professor Miia Kivipelto, one of the world's most influential researchers in the field.
Miia Kivipelto is an important source of inspiration for our work on brain health, and we have had the privilege of both hosting her as a lecturer and discussing developments in the field with her on an ongoing basis.
The message of the article is clear:
"Midlife is the time. It's the last best chance to lower risk."
The view of dementia is changing. Researchers increasingly believe it is not a disease that suddenly appears in old age, but one that develops over decades. The Washington Post writes:
"The idea that dementia prevention may hinge on what people do in their mid-30s to their 60s is rapidly reshaping the field. Scientists increasingly believe the disease is driven not only by changes in the aging brain, but also by years of metabolic stress, inflammation and vascular damage accumulating across the body."
In other words: the brain's future is likely decided not only in the brain, but also by how we manage blood pressure, blood lipids, blood sugar, inflammation, sleep and physical activity throughout life.
Akinkunle Oye-Somefun at York University sums up the state of the research:
"The younger you are, the greater the bang for the buck in terms of these behaviors and lowering your risk."
And Ahmad Hariri, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, notes: "It seems if you wait until later life to intervene it's too late, the damage that has been done is really irreversible."
This is also why we believe the future of brain health is not just about lifestyle changes, but about understanding where you stand today. Analysing your brain health already in midlife, before any symptoms appear, makes it possible to identify risk factors, follow developments over time and act while the brain is still at its most responsive.
At Executive Health, we believe the future of brain health will be less about detecting disease and more about measuring, understanding and influencing risk factors long before they lead to problems.
Because for the brain, just as for the heart, prevention is likely far more powerful than treatment.
Source: The Washington Post, feature on brain health with Professor Miia Kivipelto.
