研究表明，保持心脏健康可以让大脑永葆青春

研究表明，保持心脏健康可以让大脑永葆青春

If you want to keep your brain sharp and focused as you age, it's important to keep your heart healthy.

随着年龄的增长，如果你想让你的大脑保持敏锐和专注，保持心脏健康是很重要的。

People with more risk factors for heart disease — such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and obesity — experienced more cognitive decline than people with healthier hearts, according to a study published Monday in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

美国心脏病学会杂志周一发表的一项研究显示，与心脏健康的人相比，那些有更多的心脏病风险因素的人(如高血压、高胆固醇、糖尿病和肥胖)的认知能力下降更严重。

"There are many specific cardiovascular risk factors, and each can either individually, or in combination, push the fast-forward button towards different aspects of cognitive decline," said Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of the Alzheimer's Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian.

“有许多特定的心血管风险因素，每个因素都可以单独或结合起来，从不同方面快速推进认知衰退，”威尔康奈尔医学院和纽约长老会医院老年痴呆症预防诊所的主任理查德·艾萨克森博士说。

"This study focused on individual areas of cognition, such as memory and processing speed, and helps to clarify complex interrelationships between heart and brain health," said Isaacson, who was not involved in the study.

“这项研究集中在认知的个别领域，比如记忆和处理速度，有助于阐明心脏和大脑健康之间复杂的相互关系，”艾萨克森说，他没有参与这项研究。

The study followed over 1,500 dementia-free people with an average age of 79.5 for 21 years and found those at highest risk for poor heart health had faster declines in memory and the ability to compare letters, numbers, objects, pictures or patterns.

这项研究对1500名平均年龄为79.5岁的无痴呆症患者进行了21年的跟踪调查，发现那些心脏健康状况不佳的人记忆力和比较字母、数字、物品、图片或图案的能力下降得更快。

Some of those people also underwent brain scans, which found shrinkage of the brain's memory center, the hippocampus, and an increase of white spots in the brain associated with declines in functionality.

其中一些人还接受了脑部扫描，结果发现大脑的记忆中心海马体萎缩，大脑白斑增多，功能衰退。

High blood pressure and diabetes can accelerate shrinkage of the brain. High cholesterol can increase the bad protein that builds up in the brains of people with Alzheimer's.

高血压和糖尿病会加速大脑萎缩。高胆固醇会增加阿尔茨海默症患者大脑中积聚的不良蛋白质。

How to lessen your chances of dementia

如何降低患痴呆症的几率

Exercise.

锻炼。

Avoid transfats and other unhealthy fats.

避免反式脂肪和其他不健康脂肪。

Take care of your teeth.

照顾好你的牙齿。

Improve your sleep.

改善你的睡眠。

Stop smoking and avoid secondhand smoke.

停止吸烟，避免二手烟。

Dementia rates are skyrocketing

痴呆症的发病率正在飙升

Taking action to protect your brain is critical, experts say. The rate of Alzheimer's and dementia in the United States and around the world is skyrocketing. Nearly 6 million people suffer from Alzheimer's in the US, according to the Alzheimer's Association's 2020 report, and that is expected to grow to almost 14 million by the middle of the century.

专家说，采取行动保护你的大脑是至关重要的。在美国和世界各地，阿尔茨海默氏症和痴呆症的发病率正在飙升。根据阿尔茨海默氏症协会2020年的报告，美国有近600万人患有阿尔茨海默氏症，预计到本世纪中叶，这一数字将增至近1400万。

The World Health Organization says some 50 million people in the world have dementia, with the vast majority of those suffering from Alzheimer's. With nearly 10 million new cases worldwide every year, study authors say doctors need to have more tools, to help them monitor and prevent cognitive decline.

世界卫生组织表示，世界上约有5000万人患有痴呆症，其中绝大多数人患有阿尔茨海默氏症。全球每年有近1000万新病例，该研究的作者说，医生需要更多的工具，来帮助他们监测和预防认知能力下降。