Cognitive health education for the elderly includes

The core content of cognitive health education for the elderly is currently recognized in the industry and can be divided into four dimensions: correction of cognitive misunderstandings, maintenance of cognitive abilities, identification of abnormal signals, and care support and guidance. There is no unified standardized template. All content must be dynamically adjusted based on the educational level, living habits, and basic health conditions of the elderly. The essence is to help the elderly delay cognitive decline, reduce the risk of dementia, and at the same time improve the quality of life after illness.

I have been working in a community cognitive intervention project for almost four years, and I have seen too many elderly people wave their hands when they hear the word "cognitive health" and say, "I'm old and confused, so it's normal." Therefore, the first step in all health education is to get rid of these deep-rooted misunderstandings. I met 63-year-old Aunt Zhang before. She lost her grocery shopping wallet three times just six months after her retirement. She was so scared that she cried at home every day, saying that she was going to suffer from Alzheimer's disease. Later, she took her for a screening. She just retired and suddenly separated from society. The temporary memory loss caused by the lack of stimulation of the brain for a long time is not pathological at all. It's interesting to say that now regarding the direction of cognitive training, the opinions of practitioners in different fields are quite different: the evidence-based medicine school recommends standardized programs such as number deletion and spatial memory training, which have clear research data support to improve reaction speed. ； Practitioners of the traditional Chinese medicine system also recommend holistic conditioning methods such as Baduanjin, head acupoint massage, and dietary supplements, which are more in line with the health habits of the Chinese elderly. ； Researchers with a sociological background believe that the natural cognitive stimulation brought about by allowing the elderly to return to social interaction and assume family responsibilities within their capabilities (such as picking up children and cooking meals for the family) is much more effective than deliberate training. When we do projects, we usually provide all three categories of content, and the elderly can use whichever they choose. There is no need to have unified standards. The brain is like a knife, the more you use it, the brighter it becomes. If you keep it for a long time, it will rust easily. Don’t lie at home all the time when you are retired. Even if you go downstairs and play mahjong with your old friend for half an hour every day, you are exercising your brain.

In addition to how to "train the brain", it is more important to teach the elderly and their families how to identify abnormal signals, and not to regard pathological decline as normal aging, nor to regard normal aging as a terminal illness. There used to be a 72-year-old Uncle Wang whose children were out of town. At first, he just forgot to add salt when cooking. Later, he gradually couldn't remember whether he had eaten or not. His children thought he was old and confused. When he came home during the Chinese New Year, they found that he could not even find the gate of his community. When he went to check for it, he already had moderate Alzheimer's disease, missing the best intervention period. When we talk to the elderly now, we don't list a bunch of professional standards, but just make up a jingle: "You forget what you just said, you can't find a home in a familiar place, you suddenly fail at something you know how to do, and your temper changes drastically." If you have two of these things, you should go to the hospital's neurology department for examination. Don't hide your illness and avoid medical treatment. It should also be mentioned here that not all forgetfulness is a problem: not being able to find the keys you just put away or remembering the name of the person you just met are normal episodic memory aging. If you really can’t remember how old you are or how many people in your family you have, then you need to be vigilant.

When talking about daily intervention, diet cannot be avoided. We never tell the elderly about such awkward words as "Mediterranean diet". We just tell them to eat deep-sea fish such as hairtail and mackerel two or three times a week, eat a small handful of nuts every day, and eat more dark green vegetables such as spinach and broccoli. They are much more effective than "brain supplements" bought for thousands of dollars. Currently, the conclusions of different studies are inconsistent as to whether supplementing Omega-3 and DHA can prevent cognitive decline. For healthy elderly people, dietary supplementation is enough. Elderly people who have developed mild cognitive impairment (MCI, a transitional stage between normal aging and dementia, and are highly reversible with early intervention) can supplement them under the guidance of a doctor. Do not buy health care products on your own. We have encountered many elderly people who spent all their retirement funds on brain supplements, which in turn delayed formal intervention.

Many people think that cognitive health education is only for the elderly. In fact, nearly half of the content is for family members and caregivers. For example, when many family members see the elderly forgetting things, they like to say, "Why did you forget again?" "I just said it yesterday", or even deliberately asking the elderly "do you remember my name?" will only aggravate the elderly's anxiety and accelerate cognitive decline. We will teach family members not to blame the elderly when they forget things, but to follow their words. For example, when the elderly ask, "When will you get off work?" Even if they have just arrived home, don't say, "Didn't I just come back?" and just say, "Come on, I'll be home in half an hour." This can reduce a lot of frustration for the elderly. Also, if the elderly at home have experienced cognitive decline, don’t change the furnishings at home casually. Keep keys and wallets in fixed places. These small details can help the elderly maintain their ability to live independently. Don’t underestimate these little communication skills. We have followed dozens of families with elderly people with cognitive impairment. In families that follow these steps, the elderly’s cognitive decline rate is nearly 30% slower than that in the control group.

In fact, after doing cognitive health education for so long, my biggest feeling is that there is no "standard answer" that must be included. All the content is ultimately aimed at making the elderly live comfortably and with dignity. Even if cognitive decline does occur, they can live a good life. This is enough.