“Do certain foods lead to dementia?”
Are there any specific kind of foods that could lead to dementia in a person? A couple of people in my family live with dementia and I am scared for my future because of it. They never ate too healthily so I'm wondering if there's some kind of correlation.
5 Answers
As far as I know, foods themselves do not cause dementia. However, one form of dementia, perhaps the most common aside from outright Alzheimer’s, is vascular dementia. This is a buildup of tiny little strokes that cause tiny amounts of damage, with a cumulative effect of slowed thinking and declining balance. Risks of tiny little strokes and risks of large strokes and heart attacks are the same. So if you are working with your primary doctor to improve all of your blood vessel risk factors then you are on the right path. To this I would add to never be dehydrated and to (of course) be involved with exercise, as these also promote good blood flow.
Richard Grant Hunter
Neurologist
Not usually. It takes severe, protracted nutritional deficiency
to create a dementia. (Think Beri Beri & other disorders of starvation.) Occasional B-12 deficiency. Far more likely it is a common dementia if your relatives are older. You will have a much better confirmation if your relatives with dementia have been diagnosed.
to create a dementia. (Think Beri Beri & other disorders of starvation.) Occasional B-12 deficiency. Far more likely it is a common dementia if your relatives are older. You will have a much better confirmation if your relatives with dementia have been diagnosed.
The only specific food that was found to cause dementia was Cycads which grows in Guam and is implicated in causing severe types of dementia, like Huntington & PD ...
No, foods do not have a link to dementia, however taking vitamins and actively doing brain-heavy tasks can help prevent onset.
Studies suggest a correlation between a high carbohydrate diet (flour and sugar) and earlier onset of dementia. A Mediterranean diet may slow the onset of dementia.
