What does cognitive health education for the elderly include?

Judging from the practice of cognitive science popularization in the elderly on the front line, the core of this type of health education is to focus on the three core directions of cognitive full-cycle maintenance, risk factor prevention and control, abnormal signal identification and intervention, and to carry out knowledge popularization and behavioral guidance for the elderly, family members and primary caregivers, covering multiple dimensions of physiological, psychological and social support.

Last week, when I was doing charity science popularization in Zhongguancun Street, Haidian, I was surrounded by seven or eight aunts and uncles as soon as I left. The most frequently asked question was "Can eating walnuts and supplementing lecithin prevent poor memory?" In fact, there is no unified conclusion in the academic circles on this point. A long-term cohort study shows that people with high homocysteine blood levels For people at high risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and insufficient Omega-3 intake, supplementing with corresponding nutritional supplements as directed by doctors can indeed reduce the risk of cognitive decline. However, healthy elderly people only need to ensure a balanced diet and eat more deep-sea fish, dark vegetables, and whole grains. They do not need to spend a lot of money on health products. Taking too much supplement may increase the metabolic burden on the liver and kidneys.

Don’t think that cognitive health education is all for the elderly. Content for family members and caregivers actually accounts for a large proportion. When I was doing cognitive screening before, I met an aunt who brought her 78-year-old wife. She said that the old man was responsible for buying and cooking food every day. Recently, he left his wallet at the grocery store three times in a row. He also kept saying that the money at home was stolen by the nanny. The family thought that the old fool was throwing a tantrum and coaxed him away. No one took it seriously. After the screening, it was found that he had mild cognitive impairment. Fortunately, he was discovered early and after more than half a year of intervention, the frequency of forgetting things has significantly reduced. This kind of knowledge to distinguish between "normal aging forgetfulness" and "pathological cognitive decline" is one of the core contents of health education - for example, a skill that was originally very proficient suddenly becomes poor, the perception of time and place becomes confused, and the personality suddenly becomes suspicious and irritable. These are not "normal manifestations of old people". If you find out, you must go to the neurology department for investigation in time.

In addition to risk identification, we will also teach you some highly practical home intervention methods. There are different opinions on this point. Some scholars believe that professional and systematic cognitive training is required to be effective. There are also many practical cases that prove that as long as the elderly are interested in activities that can actively mobilize attention and memory, they can play a role in cognitive maintenance - such as liking to go out. The elderly people at my door dance square dances, play croquet, and chat with old friends every day. They like to write calligraphy and raise flowers quietly at home. They even accompany their children to memorize ancient poems and build building blocks when taking care of their grandchildren. These are all good passive cognitive training. You don’t have to force the elderly to do Sudoku and memory exercises that they don’t like. On the contrary, it will make the elderly feel resistant, and the effect is not as good as following their interests.

Oh, by the way, many elderly people now have a strong sense of shame about cognitive decline and dementia. They feel that they are "stupid" and "will cause trouble for their children" if they have this disease, so even if they find that they forget things more and more frequently, they hide it and dare not say anything. This part of psychological counseling is also an important part of health education. We will repeatedly tell the elderly and their families that cognitive decline is not a terminal disease. Early intervention and early control. Even if dementia is diagnosed, as long as proper care is taken, you can maintain a high-quality life for a long time without any psychological burden. In the final analysis, cognitive health education is never about setting rigid rules for everyone. It is about helping the elderly and their families avoid detours, avoid risks in advance, know how to deal with problems when they encounter them, and live a good life comfortably. This is the core purpose.