If you are under 40 and can’t remember where you’ve left your car keys, it’s just one of those things. You decide to pay more attention next time you put them down. But if you’ve reached middle age there’s a stab of fear and the question – could this be the beginning of dementia?

In a poll of attitudes to ageing conducted by YouGov for national charity Pilgrims’ Friend Society, some 62 percent of 40 to 60-year-olds in the UK said they are worried about developing dementia in later life.

The disease holds the dread that cancer did 30 years ago, although it is less now that many cancers can be treated. In contrast, there are only a few drugs that help with dementia and there is no cure in sight. It’s not only a terminal disease but one that strikes our greatest fear – of losing control of our lives and of our very being.

Yet people in this age group have more control over their ‘dementia destiny’ than they realise.

For the past 30 years, the rate of new cases of dementia (the incidence) has declined by an average of 13 percent each decade in Europe and the US. If this trend continues, by 2040 there will be 15 million fewer people living with dementia in these countries. Click here for more.

The fall is due to people living healthier lifestyles that build a strong protection against dementia: a healthy cardiovascular system with good blood flow to and within the brain. They include exercising regularly (particularly walking), a healthy diet, not smoking, drinking only a little alcohol, controlling high blood pressure, continuing to exercise their brains (learning, reading and so on) and staying socially connected. People with better indicators of cardiovascular health at midlife see reduced risk of later dementia, said experts at the American Academy of Neurology.

Dr Pamela Rist, ScD, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of the Academy of Neurology said, “The good news is that making healthy lifestyle choices in middle age may lead to a decreased risk of dementia later in life.” Neurologist Jonathan Scott of UCL, London, said that the findings ‘reinforce the importance of population-based efforts to improve vascular health and suggests that we may already be seeing dementia prevention in action.’

It could also be the answer to the big question prompted by the controversial theory that Alzheimer’s disease is caused by protein deposits on the brain (amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles). These deposits are referred to as ‘the hallmark of Alzheimer’s’ yet they are found in the brains of most older people who never develop the disease or any other type of dementia, including those living into their 90s and 100s.[1] Like Dr Scott, many believe this is because good cardiovascular and brain health staves off their effects, while others question whether the plaques are the cause at all.

Now more attention is being given to the effects of mental health and dementia risk. Feelings of loneliness, anxiety and depression cause a stress hormone (cortisol) to rise and narrow blood vessels and affect circulation. Research in New Zealand of 1.7 million hospitalisation records showed that those with a mental-health diagnosis were four times as likely to develop all types of dementia than those without. In the 1980s when he changed the understanding of and treatment of dementia, pioneering Professor Tom Kitwood of Bradford University wrote that, ‘dementia may be induced, in part, by the stresses of life…’ (Dementia Reconsidered, Kitwood, 2000, OUP )

A paper in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease (2021; 80(2): 505–519) suggested that a new concept in medicine called Spiritual Fitness should be listed among preventative measures. But the Scriptures t are more powerful, because they are ‘alive and active,’ (Hebrews 4:12). We live in a world fallen in sin where we are affected by negative actions and thoughts. It’s why Ephesians 4:23 tells us that rather than ruminating on negative thoughts, we are to only let good thoughts ‘dwell’ in our minds. The psalmist writes, ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; test my thoughts. Point out anything you find in me that makes you sad, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.’ Psalm 138: 23-24.

No-one can say that it’s easy to live as the Scriptures instruct. Putting aside resentment when misunderstood, loving someone who has been unkind, preferring another over oneself can be a tough, spiritual battle. But it’s worth it, because it enriches us and puts us in charge of the direction of our lives, ones that with a hope of avoiding dementia. Come on, middle-agers! Let’s follow the psalmist towards a dementia free old age. If necessary, get help! The NHS therapy of choice is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), which mirrors Scriptural principles, and a good self-help handbook, available from Amazon, is ‘The Little CBT Workbook, A step-by-step guide to controlling your life.’ And look out for new resources to help those in mid-life make the changes now which can lead to a great later life, coming soon from Pilgrims’ Friend Society.

More from Pilgrims' Friend Society