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The Brain Mistake That Increases Your Risk of Memory Loss After 50

Doctor Alex

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https://www.dralexnewsletter.com Join the community by signing up to my daily newsletter! Practical health advice, straight to your inbox, every morning.

What if the process that leads to memory loss in your seventies was already under way while you still felt completely well?

This video is about dementia prevention, blood sugar and insulin resistance, cognitive reserve, midlife hearing loss and the everyday habits that quietly shape brain health after the age of fifty.

The most recent Lancet Commission estimates that up to around 45 percent of dementia cases could be prevented or delayed, and the damage behind those cases builds silently, often for the best part of two decades before anyone notices a problem with their memory. That long, silent window is the opportunity. I explain what a slowly rising blood sugar does to the tiny vessels feeding the brain, why a yearly HbA1c is one of the most useful tests you can pay for, and how insulin resistance builds for years before you feel a single thing.

I then look at cognitive reserve, the buffer that explains why two people with identical changes inside the brain can have completely different symptoms, and why a comfortable, quiet, undemanding life slowly wears that buffer away. Finally I come to the risk factor the evidence places above almost every other one, the reason it does so much harm has very little to do with the ears themselves, and what the randomised trial evidence on hearing aids actually shows. This one is personal for me, and it is also one of the simplest things on the whole list to act on.

What you'll learn
-Why the changes behind dementia begin decades before any symptoms appear
-What a slowly rising blood sugar does to the small vessels that feed your brain
-Why HbA1c is worth tracking every year, and what to do if it climbs
-How cognitive reserve is built, and how modern comfort quietly erodes it
-The single largest modifiable risk factor in the Lancet Commission data
-What the hearing aid trials do and do not show about protecting memory

Disclaimer: This is not personal medical advice and does not override what your doctor says.

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 – Introduction
02:35 – First, a hopeful idea about how dementia actually begins
05:18 – Mistake one, brushing off a slowly rising blood sugar
09:28 – Mistake two, drifting away from the hard, effortful things
12:48 – And the number one mistake, the one nobody expects
15:34 – What the Evidence Really Means for You

REFERENCES
Dementia prevention, intervention, and care: 2024 report of the Lancet standing Commission
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39096...

Dementia prevention, intervention, and care: 2020 report of the Lancet Commission
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32738...

Potential for primary prevention of Alzheimer's disease: an analysis of population-based data
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25030...

The fraction of cancer attributable to modifiable risk factors in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and the United Kingdom in 2015
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29567...

Clinical and biomarker changes in dominantly inherited Alzheimer's disease
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22784...

Amyloid beta deposition, neurodegeneration, and cognitive decline in sporadic Alzheimer's disease: a prospective cohort study
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23477...

Glucose levels and risk of dementia
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23924...

Type 2 Diabetes as a Risk Factor for Dementia in Women Compared With Men: A Pooled Analysis of 2.3 Million People Comprising More Than 100,000 Cases of Dementia
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26681...

Alzheimer's Disease Is Type 3 Diabetes-Evidence Reviewed
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19885...

Cognitive reserve in ageing and Alzheimer's disease
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23079...

Leisure activities and the risk of dementia in the elderly
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12815...

Association of social contact with dementia and cognition: 28-year follow-up of the Whitehall II cohort study
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31374...

Hearing loss and incident dementia
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21320...

Hearing intervention versus health education control to reduce cognitive decline in older adults with hearing loss in the USA (ACHIEVE): a multicentre, randomised controlled trial
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37478...

Association of Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implants With Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36469...

A 2 year multidomain intervention of diet, exercise, cognitive training, and vascular risk monitoring versus control to prevent cognitive decline in at-risk elderly people (FINGER): a randomised controlled trial
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25771...

#dralex #doctoralex #dementia #brainhealth #memoryloss #hearingloss

20 Comments

@DrAlexWibberley Creator 1 month ago Pinned

https://www.dralexnewsletter.com/ Join the community by signing up to my daily newsletter! Practical health advice, straight to your inbox, every morning. I'd love you to join me.

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Best wishes,
Alex

@kestut 2 months ago

1. Letting blood sugar rise as you get older. 2. You stop challenging your brain. 3. Untreated hearing loss.

@WillC-k5r 2 months ago

I have started to learn the bagpipes, but now I have less friends, and it's loud enough to hurt my ears. It's a vicious circle.

@AllanP-n3q 2 months ago (edited)

Regarding challenging the brain: I am 72 years old and have started learning Chinese 5 months ago. Why chinese? Mostly because its hard!! But it would also be fun to use at chinese restaurants. I have not told my family because I want it to be a surprise that their old dad can speak chinese.

@allezvenga7617 2 months ago

It’s reassuring to know nearly 45% of dementia risk is within our control. The reminder about building cognitive reserve through new challenges and post-meal walks is super actionable. Great video!

@gustavojosepessoademoraes3456 2 months ago

I'm amazed at how far you are from a traditional doctor yet know enough about its essentials to give us countless tips, guidance, and orientation on preventing multiple illnesses. You save lives in both your current job and on your channel by sharing your knowledge worldwide (I'm Brazilian, and I see you from Brazil). I started watching you the day before yesterday, and I'm already changing my life when it comes to exercise and diet. You have given me motivation to walk for 40 minutes at night and to ride a stationary bike for 30 minutes after lunch or big meals. I will start losing weight because now I'm mindful of what I put on my plate and how much of it, mainly because I will exercise right after. I will consume more of the foods that are good for our health and avoid those that aren't, and avoid the bad habits that take us to the cemetery earlier. The world needs more doctors like you. Keep up the great work.

@magenta4443 2 months ago (edited)

I am diabetic and my brain is sharp. My husband has normal blood glucose and he has memory issues and seizures. My husband (72) has hearing loss and does not eat healthy. I (69) am constantly using my brain to solve provlems and it get stimulated daily. I eat healthy and high protein and low carb.

@BATgirl57 2 months ago

I am passionate about knitting and would love to teach all my fellow elders! (I’m turning 70 soon.) There are so many techniques to challenge me and learn, keeping those new brain pathways forming! Only downside is I sit quite a bit since diving into this new favorite hobby, but it’s possible to walk and knit with the right project! Also, I love to take my knitting out to public parks, beaches, cafes etc just to get out of the house! Thank you Dr. Alex! 🙏💙🙏💙🙏💙

@raissamarking-fg9wl 2 months ago

Kind of embarrassing but I experienced quite a lot of hearing loss and when I went to the doctor to get it checked she found a large amount of earwax buildup that was causing the problem. I had no idea it was in there. She removed it and I am grateful that there was a solution because I had found myself sinking into a feeling of isolation at places I frequented because I couldn't understand what people were saying. It was depressing. Now I regularly use an ear cleaning treatment and so far my hearing is doing well.

@dart26 2 months ago

As a retired RN from the US I have noticed that loss of any sense, hearing (as you said) or sight in particular seem to help in the demential demise of patients. While you are basing what you say,on clinical evidence (it’s why I watch you) the loss of sight also (empirically) seems to act similarly to the loss of hearing. It isolates the individual and prima facially appears to accelerates mentation decline

@robkelly5722 2 months ago

Damnit, being an antisocial grouch was one of things I was looking forward to doing when I retire!

@Not-a-GSD 2 months ago

It’s amazing that starting a healthy lifestyle change is most impactful when you feel healthy.

@ulfeliasson5413 1 month ago

OMG, you destroyed my entire old age. I'm in deep sh*t. Loss of hearing from too much music, amen!

@Jess-the-GoldenWanderess 2 months ago

I've been watching Little House on the Prairie and got ideas from that show. 😊 I have to hand wash my dishes, decided to stack them wet, then dry with a towel and put them away immediately after. I know it's not much, but any movement increase in my day to day is going to be good for me. My mom is T2 diabetic and has been for over 30 years and I see how her illness has taken so much from her.

@Sahlstrom1550 2 months ago

Bingo! Hearing loss. My dad sunk into dementia. He became very deaf and was too proud to wear hearing aids. ❤

@gaborlaszlonagy7730 2 months ago

As a physician I enjoy following your videos, it helps improving my english, also I love the way how you tackle our modern days medical issues. Your approach is unique.

At some point you were talking about HbA1c as an annual blood test, reflecting the past 2 or 3 months average blood sugar. In my opinion this test is worthless in healthy individuals, because always it is a late marker for glucose metabolism issues. It comes handy in case of type 2 diabetes, to follow up the treatment effectiveness.

On the other hand, I believe the HOMA index is more appropriate - estimates insulin resistance and pancreatic beta-cell function using fasting blood glucose and fasting insulin levels. It is an early warning sign, it can signal the beginning of insulin resistance. At this phase the therapeutic window is widely open, it is easier to take preventive measures in order to slow down or reverse developing insulin resistance.

@britinportugalcl7256 2 months ago

I literally have just got home from picking up my hearing aids. I have mild hearing loss due to heavy metal music. But I am now 70, so is this too late? I also have high protein, low carb diet and do brain training every day and trying to learn Portuguese so I can talk to my neighbours, so fingers crossed.

@agonzaes 2 months ago

Thanks Dr Alex. I’m 57 and I find your posts very helpful and helpful to modify my own daily bad habits and create new ones. Cheers and regards from Mexico 🇲🇽 😊

@cynthb 2 months ago

Thank you! I'm 61 and trying to build the habit of doing 5 bodyweight squats (getting deeper each week) after every time I use the washroom. Good for balance, good for getting out of chairs, good all around! I also knit challenging / advanced patterns. And hearing loss runs in my family, so I had a baseline hearing test done in my early 50's, which I'd recommend to anyone around that age.

@Mary-b2p3g 2 months ago

Thank you Dr Alex for all of your work. The power we have to revolutionise our health in our mature years is truly humbling. That chronic illness is not inevitable. Thank you for generously sharing your knowledge.