How to lower your dementia risk: Top 10 tips, plus emerging research

September is World Alzheimer’s Month. And the theme of World Alzheimer’s Month 2023 is dementia risk reduction.  

As Alzheimer Disease International’s motto for this month, “Never too early, never too late,” indicates, it’s always a good time to take steps to reduce your dementia risk. 

So join us online September 20 at 12 p.m. Eastern for a free conversation about dementia risk reduction. Register now via Zoom to reserve your spot.

Together, we will review some of the top 10 ways to reduce your dementia risk. And if you are already living with dementia, these 10 actions can also help support your overall brain health.  

During this talk, we will also hear from some exciting young researchers in Canada about what they are looking at next in the dementia risk field. Speakers confirmed so far include:

• Dylan Guan, a PhD student at the University of Calgary who is researching how to better detect and address early dementia risk
• Rebeca Hernández Gamboa, a PhD student at the University of British Columbia who is researching how different kinds of exercise affect cognitive function
• Annalise LaPlume, a postdoctoral researcher at Toronto Metropolitan University and McGill University's Douglas Research Centre who is studying how lifestyle changes can impact dementia risk differently for women
• Myuri Ruthirakuhan, a postdoctoral researcher at Sunnybrook Research Institute who is studying how groups of cardiovascular risk factors can impact risk of dementia

All of these speakers are recent recipients of awards from the Alzheimer Society Research Program. This year, the program distributed nearly $6 million in funding to 44 researchers across Canada to change the future of dementia.

This talk will take place in English, with live interpretation provided in French. It will be moderated by Leah Sandals, Senior Editor at the Alzheimer Society of Canada.

This talk is part of the monthly Dementia Talks! Canada series. Dementia Talks! Canada is produced in partnership by Alzheimer Society of Canada and Brain Canada. 

If you have any questions, comments or concerns about this talk, please contact publications@alzheimer.ca anytime. 

More details about the speakers

Dylan Guan

Dylan Guan is a PhD student working with Dr. Zahinoor Ismail at the University of Calgary. He received his Honours Bachelor of Science with a Neuroscience Major, Psychology Minor, and Physiology Minor from the University of Toronto. He is the Member-in-Training representative for the Alzheimer Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer Research and Treatment (ISTAART) Neuropsychiatric Syndromes Professional Interest Area, a Killam Laureate, and Alzheimer Society Research Program Doctoral Award recipient. Dylan’s research focuses on how changes in how we think, act, see, and move as we grow older can be red flags for dementia. By better understanding these red flags, Dylan hopes to improve the way we detect and address early dementia risk.

Rebeca Hernández Gamboa

Rebeca Hernández Gamboa is a psychologist and exercise scientist with clinical and academic experience. Her research focuses on the relationship between exercise and cognition. She is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of British Columbia under the guidance of Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, and her research studies how various forms of physical exercise impact the cognitive abilities of older adults living with mild cognitive impairment. Her community involvement has reinforced her commitment to conduct research that directly addresses the needs of older adults living with cognitive impairment and dementia. Rebeca's goal is to become an independent investigator conducting research that promotes older adults’ neurocognitive health and functional independence. She recently received a doctoral award from the Alzheimer Society Research Program.

Dr. Annalise LaPlume

Dr. Annalise LaPlume is a postdoctoral researcher at Toronto Metropolitan University and at the Douglas Research Centre of McGill University. She studies Alzheimer's disease risk reduction and prevention. She investigates why women are at higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease than men, and how we can help prevent dementia in men and women. Her research has been published in prestigious dementia journals, and it has also been awarded several competitive fellowships, including from the Alzheimer Society Research Program and the Quebec Consortium for Early Identification of Alzheimer's Disease.

Dr. Myuri Ruthirakuhan

Dr. Myuri Ruthirakuhan is a postdoctoral fellow at the Sunnybrook Research Institute in Toronto. Dr. Ruthirakuhan earned her PhD at the University of Toronto in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology. Some of her work has dealt with topics surrounding biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease. Recently, she received an award from the Alzheimer Society Research Program to study how cardiovascular risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes can raise dementia risk when they overlap. In addition, she has received a Canadian Institutes of Health Research fellowship to study apathy and tau levels in people living with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.

Moderator: Leah Sandals

Leah is Senior Editor, Knowledge Translation and Exchange at the Alzheimer Society of Canada. Leah’s mother developed frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in her late 40s, and her aunts developed it in their 50s and 60s. Leah has participated in some international FTD research studies since then and also helped build out Alzheimer Society of Canada's young onset dementia hub at alzheimer.ca/youngonset.

Prior to joining the Alzheimer Society of Canada in 2021, Leah worked for 20 years in journalism and non-profit publishing.