669: The latest on how to prevent Alzheimer’s | Kellyann Niotis, M.D.

[upbeat music] So we are recording on September tenth, twenty twenty-six, and I wanna call out the date because the world of brain health is changing rapidly.

So what do we know for sure about Alzheimer's and cognitive decline in September twenty twenty-six?

Yes.

So indeed, the world is changing in this field rapidly.

Every day, new research is coming out.

What we know for sure is that Alzheimer's is a preventable disease and that it's not destiny, that your genes don't dictate whether or not you will get this disease, and there's a lot in your power that you can do to take ownership over this.

So a message of empowerment.

Your genes are not your destiny.

So if I'm listening and I say, "Oh, well, you know, this runs in my family.

I have an APOE4 gene or double copy of that gene, so my, my risk is significantly elevated compared to, uh, other genes," you say, "Genes are not your destiny.

We've got a-- W-we can help here."

Somebody just came into our office earlier, before this call, and said that, you know, he was a double E4 carrier.

Said that his highly educated sister, who's a nurse, is a little bit older than him, doesn't believe in any of it, doesn't think that there's anything that you can do.

And to hear that, you know, I'm a little biased because the people that I see already are so informed, and they're so educated, and they know that there's a lot that they could do that's in their power.

But the fact is that there are so many people out there who don't believe that Alzheimer's can potentially be preventable.

They don't believe that there's any reason to do any sort of genetic test because there's nothing that they can do about the result.

And it's hard for me to hear that because there's overwhelming evidence that there is so much that we can do.

And it's not just lifestyle.

There's a lot that we can do on a medical front, which is [chuckles] why I have a whole practice geared toward pr- towards preventive neurology.

With prevention, time is always on your side.

The earlier you start with prevention, whether it's neurological or heart-- what-whatever it might be, the, the better chance you have of s-succeeding.

With that said, if I'm listening and I'm in my thirties, forties, twenties or fifties, like what, what are the things I should be doing today if I want very low likelihood of any cognitive decline as I age?

Most listeners probably have heard Eat better, exercise better, exercise more, sleep more.

Like, great, reduce your stress.

That sounds all perfect in the abstract.