Fight against aging and dementia, do "finger exercises" to improve memory and flexibility

To live you have to move! We need to exercise to avoid aging and dementia! For the elderly with mild cognitive impairment, many studies have shown that appropriate physical activity, including aerobic exercise, muscle strength training, and finger exercises, can help delay the severity of cognitive impairment and of course help prevent dementia.

More physical activity can prevent dementia and anti-aging

Currently, about 18% of the elderly population in Taiwan over the age of 65 suffer from mild cognitive impairment, and dementia accounts for about 8%. In order to prevent the early onset of dementia, many studies have pointed out that moderate exercise is helpful to the brain.

Chen Yinan, director of the National Federation of Occupational Therapists Associations, said that there is a wealth of research on how physical activity can prevent dementia and fight aging. The main possible factors include: it can promote an increase in blood volume in the brain, which will help stimulate the proliferation of synapses in the brain. In addition, it can stimulate the production of neurotrophic factors in the brain, thereby stimulating the production of new neurons and protecting existing neurons. It can also effectively improve substances in the blood that are related to the pathology of dementia, such as angiogenesis factors, metabolic inflammation, etc.

★【Recommended exercises to prevent aging and dementia】

As for preventing aging and dementia, which exercises are recommended? The following are summarized into 4 categories:.

1. Aerobic exercise: such as jogging, cycling, swimming, rhythmic gymnastics, etc.

2. Muscle strength training: It is recommended to use sandbags of appropriate weight tied to the hands and feet to perform activities, or you can tie the sandbags to a wooden stick and lift them with both hands. In addition, you can also do it by lifting dumbbells, pulling elastic bands, etc.

3. Stretching exercises: such as stretching exercises, towel exercises, yoga, etc.

4. Use cognitive training aids for exercise: such as somatosensory games and whack-a-mole games. These are fun and can effectively enhance the participation motivation of the elderly through the interface of sound and light stimulation.

★ Finger exercises can help prevent and delay dementia

In fact, in addition to large-body movements, moving your fingers can also have unexpected effects on preventing and delaying dementia. In his book "The Amazing Effects of Finger Exercises", Dr. Takuji Shirasawa, the "anti-aging god" of Japan, mentioned that finger movements have been proven to give the brain proper stimulation. Compared with the average person, masters of crafts or manual art creators, such as woodworking masters or painters, have a relatively lower incidence of dementia.

Occupational therapist Chen Yinan said that now, she would like to share some interesting "finger activities" so that the elderly can use their brains and hands at any time and easily without being restricted by the location at home.

1. Finger exercise (single or multiple people)

Paired with the catchy "Ibiyaya", it's a challenge to your reaction speed and finger dexterity. While singing the ballad, use the fingers of both hands to make gestures as follows (see Figure 1-3):

"Yi" = "pointing the index finger"

「比」=「clench fist」

"Yeah" = "all five fingers open"

Of course, it would be more challenging if the difficulty could be graded. Here are two advanced challenge modes:

(1) Advanced Mode 1: One person sings the song, and the others follow the correct movements in sync with the singing. The speed can be increased or alternating between fast and slow.

(2) Advanced Mode 2: Make different movements with both hands, as shown below.

"Yi" = right hand "pointing index finger"; left hand "all five fingers open".

"比" = both hands are "clenched into fists".

"Ah" = "all five fingers open" on the right hand; "point the index finger" on the left hand.

2. Work together (single or multiple people)

First put the rubber band on the thumb (as shown in Figure 4), then pass it to the index finger in sequence (as shown in Figure 5), and after passing it to the little finger, put the rubber band into the upright glass bottle (as shown in Figure 6). It can be done by one person, with a timer of 3 minutes, to see how many you can put on (it is recommended to record it every day, and breaking your own record is also a challenge); or you can compete with multiple people to see who can put on the most in 3 minutes.

3. Finger Sumo Tournament (two people)

Doubles competition. Use your thumbs to have an interesting and exciting sumo wrestling competition (as shown in Figure 7), and see who can suppress the opponent's thumb for 5 seconds to become the winner.

4. Turtle Turtle (two or more people)

A finger-interactive game that can be played by two or more people (as shown in Figure 8). When one person shouts "Turtle Turtle", and raises a finger, the others also have to raise a finger, but they cannot be the same finger as the person who shouted the command, otherwise the challenge will fail.

5. Finger hopping (single or multiple players)

(1) Draw a grid on paper (see Figure 9).

(2) Starting from the starting point, when you encounter one grid, use the index finger to stand; when you encounter two grids, use the index finger and stop standing (as shown in Figures 10 and 11).

(3) Timing: When jumping alone, you can challenge your own best score; when jumping with others, you can compete to see who can jump the fastest.

(4) Advanced version (memory test): One person jumps first (asks for a question), and the other person follows and jumps on the same square.

[Tips for anti-aging and dementia prevention]:

1. Maintain regular exercise habits, at least 2 to 33 times a week.

2. Control your diet and maintain a proper weight (to prevent the three highs: high blood pressure, high blood lipids, and high blood sugar). It is recommended to adopt a "Mediterranean diet" or consume more high-quality protein (such as white meat such as fish and chicken), and reduce exposure to tobacco and alcohol.

3. Participate in more community activities, maintain interaction with people, chat with friends more often, think and respond to fresh and different topics, which can also help activate the brain.

4. Choosing mobile APP games, game consoles or cognitive training software suitable for the elderly can also be of positive help, but you should pay attention to the elderly's eyesight and avoid using them in incorrect postures and insufficient light. In addition, it is not suitable for long-term use.