Dementia Prevention Naturally

23 September 2014

Dementia Prevention Naturally: Evidence-Based Strategies to Enrich Cognition
by Felix Veloso M.D. with Roxanne Veloso-Tang and Joanne Veloso
Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing
Review by Regine Haensel
$18.88 ISBN 978-1-927756-11-9

We are all getting older. “If you live long enough,” writes Dr. Felix Veloso, “you will either develop dementia or care for a loved one with the mind-robbing curse.” Felix Veloso, M.D., F.R.C.P. (C), F.A.A.N. is a Saskatchewan neurologist who has been practicing for over forty years. He is a professor of clinical medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, and a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. His book, Dementia Prevention Naturally, does not claim to diagnose, cure or treat any disease; rather it suggests strategies that can help keep us cognitively healthy. The book gives definitions and information about various memory impairments, such as Age-Associated Memory Impairment, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and disease driven dementias. Statistics, information from patient case studies, as well as data from reports and research studies are provided. Also useful are the notes at the back of the book, as well as a glossary and index.

The reader is taken through some of the tests, evaluation methods, and criteria to detect various forms of cognitive impairment. Questionnaires, a functional activities evaluation, and various medical tests can help determine whether forgetfulness is part of normal aging or dementia. Still, it appears not always easy to make a definitive diagnosis. “Alzheimer’s Disease is dementia without a detected cause.”

On the good news side, “Drs. Deborah Barnes and Kristine Yaffe, scientists from the University of California in San Francisco, reported at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on July 19, 2011 in Paris that seven potentially modifiable risk factors . . . contributed to at least 50% of Alzheimer’s disease.” The risk factors are low education, smoking, physical inactivity, depression, mid-life hypertension, mid-life obesity, and diabetes mellitus.

According to Dr. Veloso, “There is a growing body of evidence that physical exercise acts directly on the brain via neuroplasticity to prevent dementia.” Other suggestions he has for natural ways to defeat dementia include, keeping things simple, not smoking, keeping socially engaged, eating a healthy predominantly plant based diet, protective headgear in certain sports to avoid head injury, continued life-long learning, taking multi-vitamins, maintaining an ideal weight, and getting enough sleep.

As Dr. Veloso suggests, dementia is a condition that will likely impact everyone at some point in their life, and so Dementia Prevention Naturally is a book for everyone.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR VISIT WWW.SKBOOKS.COM

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