American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance

Adults who eat baked or broiled fish as little as once a week may lower their risk for mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.

According to research findings, eating non-fried fish that includes baked and broiled fish helps to preserve gray matter neurons.  The scientists note that this strengthens the areas of the brain deemed critical to cognition and memory.

“Scientists report that people with larger brain volume the risk for Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment went down with eating fish as little as one to four times a week. “We’re talking about just a half serving a day,” notes Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.   ”We would encourage millions of aging Americans to make a very small lifestyle change that can affect their risk of this terrible disease.”

The number of U.S. adults aged 65 years and older is projected to nearly double over the next two decades, Slome, head of the national long term care insurance trade organization explains.  “As a result, the incidence of cognitive issues especially Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is also expected to rise as will the need for costly long term care,” he adds.  Alzheimer’s disease is the number one reason individuals with long term care insurance file claims.

More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease the age-related disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking. Older adults with mild cognitive impairment have less severe memory loss than those with Alzheimer’s but often go on to develop the disease.

The scientists found that those who ate baked or broiled fish had larger mass in the hippocampus, and orbital frontal cortex regions of their brains.  This was regardless of age, gender, physical activity routines, and/or educational achievement, race or weight.  No benefit was evident with respect to consumption of fried fish.

Financial experts advise adults in their mid-50s to learn more about long-term care planning and get long-term care insurance costs from a designated expert.  Two free guides from the LTC association can be read online via the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/free-quote/.  Slome explains that the best ages to look into this protection is prior to age 65 when health issues including early diagnosis of cognitive issues can make it harder or more costly to medically qualify for coverage.

Tags: aging, Alzheimer's, best long term care insurance, cost, dementia, health, long term care, long-term care insurance, seniors

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