(Newswire.net — December 5, 2013) Portland, OR –Caring for an person with Alzheimer’s or dementia places an extreme burden on a person, almost as much as the one with Alzheimer’s.
If you are caring for someone with dementia then it should be satisfying to find that there is more hope on the horizon for Alzheimer’s sufferers.
Harvard researchers have discovered a simple method that can slow the advance of dementia and Alzheimer’s and return some much desired time to your loved one.
The study concluded that including yoga and meditaion for just two hours a week significantly slows the breakdown of the part of the brain associated with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
A study conducted at Harvard’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that practicing meditation and yoga just two hours a week can dramatically slow the deterioration of the part of the brain connected to Alzheimer’s and dementia.
The study conducted by Harvard’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, asked adults between 55 and 90 with mild cognitive impairments to practice mindfulness through yoga and meditation for at least two hours a week for eight weeks. And after just two short months, the meditation and yoga group had better connectivity in the parts of their brains responsible for memory, and there was far less damage and atrophy in the hippocampus.
A shrinking hippocampus, the major memory center of your brain, is one of the tell-tale signs of Alzheimer’s and dementia. And just a couple hours a week of meditation and yoga was enough to help folks keep the hippocampus intact.
The good news is that you can start this simple side-effect-free therapy with your loved one right away. There are plenty of books and online videos that will teach you meditation and yoga, or you can find a local senior center that offers them both. In fact, lots of senior centers are starting up classes specifically for folks with cognitive impairment.
Lifestyle has been found to be a key ingredient in preventing Alzheimer’s.
Give meditation and yoga a try, and instead of being forced to remember your loved one “like he was,” you can keep him like he is.
Source: Health e-Tips