Because we’re living longer, dementia is becoming more common

Once we pass the age of sixty, I reckon most of us can expect to become more involved in the world of medicine. That’s often the time when various bits and pieces of our body claim revenge for the hardship we put it through in our youth. In my case I was motoring along quite nicely until I hit that milestone, then the wheels fell off. It’s been the same for many of my friends. There are exceptions too of course.

My mother-in-law lived to be a hundred and for most of her life she was as fit as a flea. It was only in her last few years that she required medical attention. She was one of the lucky ones but for the rest of us, the ageing process will bring about some unwanted side effects.

We will experience new things about our bodies. Aches, pains and creaks appear in places that heretofore behaved themselves. Mostly we get by with a few pills and potions but occasionally we need the help of the professionals, and they can often introduce us to a world of pain.

At that age you can expect to get to know your GP pretty well and the chances are you will meet some new consultants too. You know hospital visits are becoming more regular when your car can find its own way there. I’ve had my share of that over the last few years but for the time being anyway, hopefully, that’s behind me. Thanks to the wonders of modern medicine and the professionals who practice it.

I’m a glass half full type of person generally and I’ve tried to handle my various ailments with positivity and good humour. That helps and they say it’s important too in terms of recovery.

The first question I asked after each surgery was how long it would be before I could expect to be up and about again? As soon as they gave me an approximate date, I booked a flight to my favourite holiday spot and that became my target. I stuck rigidly to whatever exercise programme was designed to get me back on my feet to give me the best shot at making the flight.

It’s important to have something to aim for. I remember reading a book thirty or forty years ago written by Viktor Frankl called ‘Man’s Search for Meaning.’ He was an Austrian psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor who invented the theory of logotherapy which suggested that if you had a ‘why’ to live, you could survive any ‘how’.

That philosophy will get you through a lot but only if you have the mental capacity to work it out for yourself which is one of the reasons I hate the idea getting any form of dementia. It’s difficult to remain positive if your mind is broken. Hard to reason things out for yourself if your brain isn’t functioning properly and that’s becoming more of a threat these days.

Because we’re living longer, dementia is becoming more common and according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are currently more than 55 million people suffering from dementia worldwide, over 60% of whom live in low-and middle-income countries. They project that figure could be as high as 139 million by 2050. That’s a frightening statistic.

In 2019, dementia cost economies globally 1.3 trillion US dollars, approximately 50% of these costs are attributable to care provided by informal carers (e.g. family members and close friends). It’s particularly tough on women who are disproportionately affected by dementia, both directly and indirectly. Women experience higher disability-adjusted life years and mortality due to dementia, but also provide 70% of care hours for people living with dementia.

I checked the Mayo Clinic to see what exactly dementia is and what, if anything, we can do to help avoid it. The word “dementia” is an umbrella term used to describe a set of symptoms, including impairment in memory, reasoning, judgment, language and other thinking skills. It usually begins gradually, worsens over time and impairs a person’s abilities in work, social interactions and relationships.

Often, memory loss that disrupts your life is one of the first or more-recognizable signs of dementia. Other early signs might include asking the same questions repeatedly, forgetting common words when speaking, mixing words up — saying “bed” instead of “table,” for example. Taking longer to complete familiar tasks, such as following a recipe.

Misplacing items in inappropriate places, such as putting a wallet in a kitchen drawer. Getting lost while walking or driving in a familiar area, having changes in mood or behaviour for no apparent reason.

We all forget things at times. Can’t find the car keys or forget the name of a person you just met. Some degree of memory problems, as well as a modest decline in other thinking skills, is a fairly common part of aging. There’s a difference, however, between normal changes in memory and memory loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders.

So, what can we do to keep our brains healthy? Peta Bee is a journalist who writes about health and wellbeing, and she wrote a piece in the Irish Examiner recently about priming your brain for longevity. She says a decline in brainpower is not an inevitable part of ageing and studies show it’s possible to future-proof your cognitive function through a combination of everyday healthy lifestyle habits.

With good habits over the years, you can mitigate the decline. Physical exercise and a healthy diet are important obviously and so is anything that gets you thinking. That includes brain apps, reading, solving puzzles such as crosswords and sudoku and the younger you start to bolster your brain, the better but it’s never too late to start.

That’s good news at least. Now, where was I?