Helping yourself
Eat well
Eat a well-balanced diet with less saturated fat and don't smoke
Exercise in moderation
Try to be active for 30 minutes at least five times a week. You don't have to join a gym or take strenuous classes - walking, dancing, gardening and housework will all keep you fit.
Exercise your mind
Exercising and challenging your brain - by learning new skills, doing puzzles such as crosswords and even learning a new language - will keep your brain in good shape. Even playing card games and doing mental arithmetic can sharpen your short term memory. Or read a book - reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. It exercises your cognitive skills and increases your vocabulary.
Be sociable
Staying healthy isn't just about keeping physically healthy. Making sure you spend time with other people can reduce any feelings of loneliness, depression and low self-worth.
Keep in touch with friends, spend time with others and engage in social activities: all will help to keep you alert and mentally healthy. Even a quick phone call, email or text can help you feel connected with those you love.
Stop Press:
RIBI Magic of Rotary Award
Congratulations to Wadebridge Rotary Club for winning this award for their work with setting up and running the Wadebridge Memory Café
The Memory Café Start-up Guide
Download a copy of our guide to Setting up a Memory Café
Government's Dementia Strategy
Read about the UK Government's National Dementia Strategy launched today - 3rd Feb 2009. There are two links, one is for the press release and the other for the full strategy.
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