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The Importance of Lifestyle and Prevention for Brain Health

The proven effects of lifestyle interventions on reducing your risk of dementia.

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A part of the risk for dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, is determined by hereditary factors. Genetic factors such as the APOE-ε4 gene can increase the risk. You cannot change that predisposition.

At the same time, more and more scientific research shows that heredity is not the whole story. Even in individuals with an increased genetic risk, lifestyle appears to play an important role.

Factors such as exercise, nutrition, sleep, cognitive activity, and cardiovascular health influence the likelihood of actual cognitive decline development.

In other words: genes determine part of the risk, but lifestyle largely determines how that risk manifests in practice.

What does scientific research say about prevention?

Over the past ten to fifteen years, the prevention of cognitive decline has become an important research area. The focus is shifting from a single factor to a combination of lifestyle interventions.

An influential series of publications on this topic has been published in The Lancet. The Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention, Intervention and Care concludes that an estimated approximately 40 percent of dementia cases are associated with modifiable risk factors throughout the lifespan.

More information and full reports:

https://www.thelancet.com/commissions/dementia-prevention-intervention-care

The main modifiable factors mentioned include:

physical inactivity
high blood pressure
unhealthy diet
smoking
depression and social isolation
poor hearing
sleep disorders

These insights form the scientific basis for the idea that prevention is meaningful, even in later life.

The FINGER Study: Design and Outcomes

One of the most cited and influential prevention studies is the FINGER study (Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability).

What was studied?

In this large-scale, randomized study, over 1200 older adults who were at increased risk of cognitive decline were followed. The intervention group received a multidomain lifestyle program, consisting of:

nutritional advice
structured physical training
cognitive training
intensive monitoring of cardiovascular risk factors

The control group received standard health information.

What were the results?

After two years, the intervention group showed:

better cognitive performance
less decline in memory, processing speed, and executive functions
better physical and general health

Important: it was not about preventing dementia in the short term, but about slowing down cognitive decline and enhancing cognitive resilience.

Publication:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(15)60461-5/abstract

Prevention in practice - a process, not a one-time action

The FINGER study shows that a combined approach is more effective than individual interventions. It's not a single lifestyle factor, but rather the combination that makes the difference.

This aligns with how brain health develops in daily life: over time, through habits, behavior, and context. Prevention is therefore not a one-time action, but a process.

Summary of this article

How lifestyle plays an important role in the prevention of dementia
Studies show that up to 40% of cases can be prevented through targeted interventions and adjustments
The various studies are widely supported internationally
Within Remind, lifestyle is the starting point, but the effects are continuously monitored, and advice is provided on what you can do

What does this say about your brain health?

Science shows that lifestyle does not guarantee protection against dementia, but it does indeed influence the risk and progression of cognitive change. By identifying risks and protective factors early on, there is room for targeted and achievable adjustments.

Lifestyle interventions are therefore not a replacement for medical care, but an important addition that gives people more control over their brain health.

Wanneer extra alert zijn?

Extra aandacht is belangrijk als je:

Diabetes hebt
Een hart- of vaatziekte hebt doorgemaakt
Nierproblemen hebt
Veel hart- en vaatziekten in de familie hebt

In die gevallen loont het om bloeddruk strak te volgen en tijdig bij te sturen.

How Remind implements lifestyle and prevention in practice

Research such as the FINGER study and publications in The Lancet demonstrate that lifestyle interventions are especially effective when they are coherent and applied over a long period of time.
Lifestyle integrated into the app, continuously monitored
Remind aligns with this by not treating lifestyle as a one-time measurement, but as something that is tracked in conjunction with other signals.
Within Remind, lifestyle factors are combined with repeated measurements, making changes visible and allowing lifestyle choices to be contextualized.
In this way, Remind supports a preventive approach that aligns with what scientific research shows: not a single intervention, but consistent attention and monitoring over time.

Within Remind, the LIBRA lifestyle test is used as one of the initial building blocks of your personal brain profile.

This happens in three specific ways:

Starting point for insight
The result of the test shows which lifestyle factors are strong for you and which may require attention. This helps to better understand and contextualize signals.
Context for other measurements
Remind combines the LIBRA results with other data, such as cognitive tests, memory tasks, and digital signals. The lifestyle context aids in better interpreting these measurements.
Monitoring over time
By periodically repeating the test, Remind can track changes. Not to draw conclusions based on a single measurement, but to reveal patterns over a longer period.

Research shows that combining questionnaires with digital biomarkers can contribute to earlier and richer insights into changes in brain health.

Within the app, these insights are presented step by step. This provides room for explanation, context, and where relevant, practical follow-up steps.

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