It is a common misconception that Dementia is simply a normal part of aging. This is not the case, as not all older people will develop Dementia. It is a chronic, progressive and terminal disease.
Think of your body as a car. It is important that we put the correct type of fuel into it for it to work properly if we continually put the wrong fuel into the tank, our car is likely going to break down. Nutrition is important to help keep our brains in tip top condition and reduce our risk of developing Dementia in the future.
3 ways to improve our brain health & reduce our risk of developing Dementia.
1. Reduce consumption of saturated fat and trans fats
Saturated and trans fats are commonly found in:
Take away foods
Coconut oil
The visible fat on meat
Cakes
Biscuits
Pastries
Butter
Full cream dairy
Ways you can reduce your consumption of saturated and trans fat is to:
Eat less processed foods (e.g. cakes/biscuits/take away foods)
Trim the visible fat off your meats and avoid processed meats (e.g. salami)
Choose low fat dairy products (e.g. milk, yoghurt and cheese)
Choose margarine instead of butter
2. Increase intake of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats
Incorporate the following foods into your diet:
Nuts (e.g. almonds, peanuts, cashews, pine, brazil, walnuts)
Avocado
Oils (e.g. olive oil, canola, rice bran, sunflower, sesame or peanut)
Oily fish (e.g. salmon, tuna, sardines, blue mackerel, snapper, anchovies) –eat fish 2-3 times per week.
Seeds (e.g. Chia and flaxseed)
3. Increase fruit and vegetable intake
Antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables help to defend against free radicals (molecules that damage cells). To make sure you are consuming enough antioxidants in your diet, ensure that you are meeting the recommended number of ‘serves’ per day of fruit and vegetables. The various colours of fruits and vegetables resembles the presence of different nutrients – so aim to ‘eat a rainbow’ of different fruit and vegetables.
Do you need help with a healthy Diet plan?
Our Dietitians are available to create a healthy diet plan for all Australians of any age. If you need a plan for a resident within an Aged Care home, please click here or for a private patient, please click here to book through our Clinic.