A “HEART HEALTHY” DIET AND ONGOING, MODERATE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY MAY PROTECT AGAINST COGNITIVE DECLINE AS WE AGE

Vienna, July 14, 2009 – Eating a “heart healthy” diet meant to lower blood pressure, and maintaining or increasing participation in moderate physical activity, may help preserve our memory and thinking abilities as we age, according to new research reported today at the Alzheimer’s Association 2009 International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease (ICAD 2009) in Vienna.

“We can’t do anything about aging or family history, but research continues to show us that there are lifestyle decisions we all can make to keep our brains healthier, and that also may lower our risk of memory decline as we age,” said William Thies, PhD, Chief Medical & Scientific Officer at the Alzheimer’s Association.

The studies reported at ICAD 2009 were:
-- Heidi Wengreen, et al -- DASH diet adherence scores and cognitive decline and dementia among aging men and women: Cache County study of Memory Health and Aging.
-- Deborah Barnes, et al – The impact of changes in physical activity levels on rate of cognitive decline in a biracial cohort of non-demented elders.
-- Mary Tierney, et al – Intensity of long-term physical activity and later life cognition in postmenopausal women.
-- Thomas Obisesan, et al – Aerobic-related physical activity interacting with apolipoprotein E genotypes, is associated with better cognitive function in a nationally representative sample: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III).

The 2009 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease (ICAD 2009) brings together more than 3,000 researchers from 70 countries to share groundbreaking research and information on the cause, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. ICAD 2009 will be held in Vienna, Austria at Messe Wien Exhibition and Congress Center from July 11–16.

For more information, visit: http://www.alz.org