Giving Compass' Take:

• As scientists research the causes of dementia, one potential preventative factor of the disease is increased brain activity and how often older individuals are learning new things. 

• Scientists still say that higher-quality studies need to come forth for them to decide anything definitively about brain decline.  How can donors help enhance dementia research? 

• Learn how loneliness is tied to a higher risk of dementia. 

Good physical, cognitive and psychological health all contribute to preventing dementia, a new study has shown...

As life expectancy rises and the world’s population ages, more people will begin to be affected by age-related diseases such as dementia. In fact, an estimated 25% of people over the age of 85 are at risk of developing a form of dementia, or cognitive decline for which there is no cure. Scientists are still trying to understand more about the causes and predictors of the condition.

One such predictive factor may be education. “There have been a lot of observational studies showing that people who have higher levels of education are less likely to get dementia,” says Deirdre Robertson, a research fellow at the School of Psychology from Trinity College Dublin.

Why this happens isn't understood, but there are some theories, including the “cognitive reserve theory”. This states that education builds up cognitive capacity in the brain. So if the brain does suffer damage, the person is less likely to show signs of cognitive decline.

Read the full article about preventing brain dementia by Ankita Anirban at The Naked Scientists.