Published on May 15, 2025
Specific risk factors impacting your mental health and how to modify them to keep your brain healthy and strong
Key Points
- Even if Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia are not currently concerns on your mind, there is something everyone can be doing, NOW, to make their brain stronger and healthier – refer to the chart below for specific factors to address
- Simple changes to diet and lifestyle can greatly improve cognitive health and lower risk of cognitive decline; which changes are most important can be guided using a simple home blood spot tests to measure vitamin D, omega-3s, blood sugar, inflammation, and B vitamin status
- Alzheimer’s Prevention Day is May 20th – learn more below
Alzheimer’s Prevention Day (May 20th) is fast approaching! Even if Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia are not currently concerns on your mind, the following is a reminder that there is something everyone can be doing, NOW, to make their brain stronger and healthier.
The following graphic features a list of factors that have been shown to affect the risk of Alzheimer’s; each of these play an important role in maintaining mental health and brain function. Take a look to see which you start addressing now – no matter what your age – to strengthen your brain and keep your memory and cognition in top shape.
This chart shows just how much power you have to lower your risk of Alzheimer’s – often dramatically – by tackling the things that are under your control. Take omega-3, for example: if your levels are low (as they are for about half of the population), simply increasing your intake – through oily fish or supplements – can reduce your personal risk by 20%. The same goes for improving your vitamin D, B vitamins, blood sugar levels, sleep, and more.
These figures are based on the latest science and apply to people over 50 in the UK, but the message is universal: prevention is possible – and it’s not about doing everything perfectly. You may not have every risk factor but even making a few targeted changes can cut your risk substantially.
Even small steps – like eating more greens, getting out in the sun, or managing stress – can have a big impact on brain health. Addressing multiple factors can bring risk close to zero. Genes like ApoE4 or MTHFR? Research shows they don’t have to determine your destiny if you make the right changes.
This is empowering, science-backed prevention – and it starts with awareness. Learn more as we approach Alzheimer’s Prevention Day, May 20th.
Every three seconds someone in the world develops dementia…
and the rate is increasing. Billions of dollars have been spent on the search for a drug that can block the damaging build-up of plaque in the brain that’s thought to be central to the disease. But the results are not impressive, and the side effects include bleeding into the brain.
Now that gloomy picture is being transformed in a remarkable and surprising way. Rather than pinning our hopes on another new, powerful and expensive drug, mounting evidence suggests that such seemingly old-fashioned approaches as diet, lifestyle, and environmental changes could dramatically reduce the number of Alzheimer’s cases.
An international Alzheimer’s Prevention Expert Group has estimated that over 80 per cent of cases could be prevented in this way. A study in Holland last year found that just having good levels of vitamin D, omega-3, found in oily fish, and B vitamins cut dementia risk to less than a quarter.[i] Other changes can also have a beneficial effect, such as regular exercise, keeping mentally active, and cutting down on sugar. This last change is especially effective since diabetics have double the risk of cognitive decline.
“Our aim is to discover the simplest changes that have the most impact on cognitive function to prevent this devastating disease, then share that information with the public and public health experts advising governments around the world”
Read the Full Press Release Here
Learn More About Alzheimer’s Prevention
Sign up for the Alzheimer’s Prevention Day webinar here.
Watch a recent news clip here.
Measure Your Levels Today!
Know your levels of Vitamin D, Omega-3s, HbA1c for Blood Sugar Status, and hsCRP for Inflammation – Get 15% Off any combination including both vitamin D and omega-3s with code OMEGA3S!
Add the Homocysteine Test for B Vitamin Status with the test kit from Food for the Brain – Only a few left in stock!
Buy Your at-home Homocysteine Test from Food for the Brain Here
How Can You Use this Information for YOUR Health?
Having and maintaining healthy vitamin D and other nutrient levels can help improve your health now and for your future. Measuring is the only way to make sure you are getting enough!
STEP 1 Order your at-home blood spot test kit to measure vitamin D and other nutrients of concern to you, such as omega-3s, magnesium, essential and toxic elements (zinc, copper, selenium, lead, cadmium, mercury); include hsCRP as a marker of inflammation or HbA1c for blood sugar health
STEP 2 Answer the online questionnaire as part of the GrassrootsHealth study
STEP 3 Using our educational materials and tools (such as our dose calculators), assess your results to determine if you are in your desired target range or if actions should be taken to get there
STEP 4 After 3-6 months of implementing your changes, re-test to see if you have achieved your target level(s)
