In this episode of The Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show, host Lisa Skinner shares insights from neuropsychiatrist Dr. Risa Hosini Gomi, who identifies five evidence‑based lifestyle actions that can lower a person’s risk of developing dementia by roughly 40% without the need for supplements. The five actions are: protect hearing (address loss early and use ear protection), prioritize 7‑9 hours of quality sleep in a dark, cool, screen‑free environment (to enable brain waste‑clearance during REM), engage in regular moderate exercise (≈150 minutes per week plus twice‑weekly resistance training to boost brain‑derived neurotrophic factor), stay socially connected (loneliness raises risk by about 50% and is linked to hearing loss), and manage mid‑life blood pressure (target <130/80 to protect cerebral vessels). Skinner explains the physiological pathways each intervention targets—cognitive overwork, toxin accumulation, reduced neurotrophic support, inflammation, and vascular damage—emphasizing that combined adherence yields the greatest risk reduction and that it is never too late to start. The second segment shifts to emerging research on microplastics in the human brain. Recent studies show a 50% rise in brain microplastic load between 2016 and 2024, with concentrations exceeding those in liver or kidney tissue, and higher levels observed in individuals with dementia. Microplastics largely originate from ultra‑processed foods (e.g., chicken nuggets contain up to 30× more microplastics than whole‑food equivalents) and can cross the blood‑brain barrier, provoking inflammation, oxidative stress, and neuronal damage. These mechanisms are linked to increased rates of dementia, depression, anxiety, and poor sleep. Scientists propose a dietary microplastic index to gauge exposure and are exploring blood‑filtering techniques (phérisis) to remove microplastics, though more research is needed. Skinner urges listeners to consider diet and environmental exposure as part of a comprehensive dementia‑prevention strategy and invites them to join her Minding Dementia support community.
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Are you caring for a loved one with dementia? You don't have to figure this out all on your own. Welcome to Truth, Lies Alzheimer's, the show that helps you reimagine a new relationship with your loved one, a relationship a little more free of stress and anxiety. Join host Lisa Skinner and her 30+ years of experience as she guides you on a new path to a better relationship with those you care for. Here's Lisa.
Hi everyone, welcome back to another new episode of the Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show. I'm Lisa Skinner, your host, and I have been receiving information from a gentleman by the name of Dr. Gomi. Risa Hosini Gomi. He's a medical doctor and an MSE. He's a neuropsychiatrist. He's an engineer. He's a 4x health tech founder and a cancer graduate. And I am finding the information that he shares to be extremely enlightening, extremely fascinating, and really valuable. And this doctor has diagnosed thousands of patients living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia and does a lot, a lot of research on this topic. So I'm going to share this information with you today, and I will be sharing more of his information with you in future episodes because I think that this is a really valuable resource of information for all of us. So he's telling us that he has discovered that through his research that there are 5 things that we all can do starting today that cuts our risk of developing dementia by 40%, and none of them require supplements. Yay! And he says, after diagnosing thousands of dementia cases, he's learned that prevention matters more than any treatment that we currently have available to us today. The research is clear on what works, and this is his recommendation, what the research has shown and what moves the needle. Number one, we got to protect our hearing. Hearing loss in midlife doubles our dementia risk, so it's recommended to use ear protection around loud noises, address hearing problems early with aids, because our brain has to work harder when it can't hear clearly. Number 2, We've got to prioritize sleep quality. I read this all the time. And he's reemphasizing that here in, in this information he's providing. It's recommended that we each get 7 to 9 hours of consistent sleep, sleep in a dark cool room without screens, address sleep apnea if you snore. And the findings are that poor sleep prevents what happens in our brains when we fall into that REM sleep, and it's brain waste clearance. It's almost like the brain goes into this washing machine mode or dishwasher mode and cleans out all the toxins that are accumulating in our brain. If you don't get, um, 7 to 9 hours of consistent sleep and fall into the deep sleep stage of REM, that brain waste clearance happening will not happen. Number 3, move your body. Move our bodies regularly. It's recommended 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, and the key is moderate exercise. Walking counts if it raises your heart rate. Resistance training is recommended twice weekly. Because exercise has been found to increase brain-derived neurotropic factor. Number 4: Stay socially connected. Loneliness has been found to increase our dementia risk by 50%. And I wanted to just mention that there is a correlation between hearing loss and isolation, because people with hearing loss have a difficult time being engaged in social interactions and social— so it's— this is all tied in. So we want to be in a position where we can enjoy and have regular meaningful conversations. They matter. Join groups, volunteer, maintain friendships throughout your life. Quality of connections beats quantity. Number 5, manage your blood pressure. A high blood pressure in midlife damages our brain blood vessels.
Vessels.
Target less than 130 over 80 if possible. Diet, exercise, and medication are necessary when needed. And because our small blood vessels feed our memory centers, and why these work— each intervention targets a different pathway to brain damage. And again, they found that hearing loss forces cognitive overwork. Poor sleep prevents toxin clearance. Inactivity reduces brain growth factors. Isolation also increases inflammation in our brains. High blood pressure damages vascular supply. The compound effect: doing one of these interventions helps tremendously. Doing all five creates dramatic risk reduction. The earlier we start, the bigger the impact, but it's never, ever, ever too late to begin. What doesn't work? Expensive supplements with marketing claims, brain training games with limited evidence, single interventions without lifestyle context. And the reality of all this is prevention requires consistent habits, not quick fixes. So, ask yourself, which of these 5 areas will you want to focus on first? Start small, baby steps. And in conclusion, Dr. Gómez reiterates that he has diagnosed over 1,000 dementia cases, and he says 40% were preventable, and that his patients wish they'd known what I just shared with you today. I think that's pretty profound. And I wanted to share one other bit of information that I come across that I think is really, really important for everybody to be aware of. This is pretty substantial. And this was published on July 18th by a Dr. Ask Why. Scientists recently found that the amount of microplastics, which are tiny plastic particles smaller than 5 millimeters in the human brain is about the size of a plastic spoon has increased by 50% between 2016 and 2024. That's just startling. Surprisingly, the brain contains more microplastics than our livers or kidneys. And people with dementia actually had higher microplastic levels than those without dementia. Researchers are now investigating how these microplastics, especially those coming from ultra-processed foods, may be affecting our brain health. Ultra-processed foods like chicken nuggets contain up to 30 times more microplastics than whole foods such as chicken breasts do. These foods now make up over half of daily calorie intake in places like the US. These microplastics in ultra-processed foods can cross the blood-brain barrier, which is the brain's natural defense and cause inflammation. And studies that I have read, there has been a direct correlation now found between inflammation and our risk of developing dementia. Also, oxidative stress and damage to the brain cells. These effects may contribute to rising rates of dementia, but also depression, anxiety, poor sleep. And these have been confirmed by studies linking ultra-processed food consumption to those conditions. Again, increased rising rates of dementia, depression, anxiety, and poor sleep. All contributing to increasing our risk of developing dementia from eating ultra-processed foods. Scientists are calling this situation a reckoning. Did you catch that? A reckoning. Since microplastics crossing into the brain challenges what we consider to be safe inside our bodies. They suggest developing a dietary microplastic index to measure exposure, and they are exploring ways to remove these microplastics from people's bodies, like using some kind of a blood filtering process called a pherisis. But more research is needed on this. So with both ultra-processed food consumption and microplastic pollution rising globally, understanding this connection is urgent in order for us to protect our brain health. That's a pretty compelling bit of information. Sure caught me— my attention. I've known for a long, long time in the research I've done and all the studies I've read that ultra-processed foods are considered to be the worst foods that we can ingest. And now this has come out saying that they increase these— the amount of microplastics by 50% between 2016 and 2054 that are being found in our brains. So food for thought, no pun intended. But, you know, I've said this before and I'm going to say it again. There is absolute truth in the adage that we are what we eat. Anyway, I thought this was going to be really valuable for all of you to know. I wanted to share it with you. I think the, the more we learn about what can possibly increase our risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and related dementia is critical for our long-term health. So that's one of the things and reasons why I bring this information to all of you every week. Because I want you to be informed. That way you can make your own decisions on how you choose to live your lives moving forward and reduce your possible risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. We don't know what we don't know. I'm taking it upon myself to educate you. So I hope you found this as valuable as I did. I think that this is just unbelievable information that's being disclosed. So that'll do it for this episode of The Truth Lies in Alzheimer's Show. I'm Lisa Skinner, your host. Thanks again for being here and spending part of your day with me. I appreciate all of you very, very much. And I will look forward to you coming back next week to join me for another episode of the Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show. Have a great rest of your week. Be healthy, be safe, and I will see y'all next week. Take care.
Bye-bye. Thank you for listening to Truth, Lies Alzheimer's. We hope you found something something in today's episode that helps. We understand that caring for a loved one with dementia can be the challenge of a lifetime, but you don't have to do it alone. If you're ready for exclusive access to even more great content and resources, head on over to Facebook and join Lisa Skinner's Minding Dementia support group. We're a community of like-minded caregivers, and we're here to Yeah, help.
