To substantially lower your risk of dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, here’s a to-do list that a new study suggests may help.
 

• At least 150 minutes a week of moderate physical activity
• Not smoking
• A Mediterranean-type diet — mostly green vegetables, fish or chicken, nuts, beans, olive oil and grains
• Light to moderate alcohol consumption, defined as no more than one drink per day for women and two for men
• Brain-challenging activities, such as reading, writing letters and playing games like chess and checkers

According to a study published in the June 2020 issue of the journal Neurology, following four or five of these healthy habits may decrease your risk of dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease by as much as 60 percent, compared with those who practice none or only one of these healthy behaviors. For study subjects, even doing just two or three of the behaviors lowered their dementia risk by 37 percent.
 

In the study, researchers from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago looked at data from nearly 3,000 older adults in two long-running federally funded studies examining risk factors for Alzheimer’s in older Chicago residents. The adults were scored on five lifestyle factors, all of which have important aging benefits.