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How to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s and other dementias

Although getting older is the biggest risk factor for dementia, evidence shows there are things you can do to help reduce your own risk. These include keeping active, eating healthily and exercising your mind.

Doing regular physical activity is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of dementia. It’s good for your heart, circulation, weight and mental wellbeing.

You might find it difficult to start being more physically active, or worry it means doing an activity you don’t enjoy. It’s important to find activities that work for you. You might find it helpful to start off with a small amount of activity and then build up gradually.

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How to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s and other dementias

Aerobic activity

Strength-building activity

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There are two main types of physical activity – aerobic activity and strength-building activity. Each type will keep you fit in different ways. Doing a combination of these activities will help you to reduce your risk of dementia. For examples of each activity type, see the dropdown list below.

Aerobic activity

Aerobic activity helps to keep your heart, lungs and blood circulation healthy – and this is good for brain health too.

‘Moderate intensity’ aerobic activity is anything that makes you breathe faster and feel warmer. ‘Vigorous’ activity is anything that makes you sweat or get out of breath after a while, making it difficult to talk without pausing for breath.

In general, one minute of vigorous activity is equal to two minutes of moderate intensity activity. The official UK recommendation is to try to do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity each week or 75 minutes of vigorous activity. You can break this activity up into smaller sessions if it’s easier for you.

It’s also a good idea to spend less time sitting or lying down and more time moving.

Strength-building activity

Strength-building activity works your major muscles (legs, back, stomach, shoulders, arms). This helps you to do everyday tasks. This type of activity also helps you to control the level of sugars in your blood and reduce your risk of diabetes, which is a risk factor for dementia. Ideally you should do strength-building activities on at least two or more days each week.