Maria Shriver, journalist, activist and founder of the non-profit organization The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement, cares a lot about brain health, and it’s not just because she’s in her 70s and that’s the stage of life when she should. Shriver’s father, Robert Sargent Shriver Jr., was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at age 87 and lived with the disease until his death at 95. Now, Shriver isn’t just trying to avoid the disease herself—she’s working hard to educate others on both prevention and treatment options.
In honor of World Alzheimer’s Day (September 21), Shriver teamed up with Eli Lilly for their Brain Health Matters campaign, which encourages people to proactively manage their brain health and reduce their risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
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“Alzheimer’s changes in the brain begin roughly 20 years before someone becomes symptomatic. Understanding what’s too much for your brain—and how to manage it—is part of living a life that actually works for you,” Shriver tells Parade. “I was talking with a friend recently whose girlfriends had all come over, and they got into a conversation about their brain health and feeling completely overwhelmed. They brought up Lindsay Clancy and how underreported postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety are, and how so many of them are just hanging on by a thread. That feeling of complete overwhelm—that’s in the brain.”
And that’s what this campaign is all about, explains Shriver. “It’s really about starting to think, ‘I’m overwhelmed—that’s in my brain. How does my body connect to that? What am I doing to feed my brain? Is it operating on overwhelm all the time, and how do I stop that? What practices can I build in to keep it healthy?'”
And on that note, there’s one thing Shriver wants everyone to think more about when it comes to brain health: Stress. Here’s why.
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Why Managing Stress Is So Important for Brain Health
Women make up nearly two-thirds of all people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. And while Shriver emphasizes that we don’t fully understand why, she believes stress is a major driver. “Stress is a big driver of almost any health outcome, and the brain is no exception. Young women raise children—then add five or six years, and you’re often also caring for aging parents. You’re overwhelmed the whole time,” she tells Parade.
To get a better picture of why women are so much more likely to get Alzheimer’s, the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland Clinic is currently funding research into the menopause transition, estrogen, stress and overwhelm—”basically everything that could be happening across a woman’s life, from puberty through pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, menopause and beyond,” Shriver says. “There are so many hormonal and health inflection points we’re studying. But here’s what we know now that we didn’t five or six years ago: lifestyle matters.”
Shriver emphasizes that your brain can’t constantly be operating in a state of overwhelm. If it is, there will be long-term consequences.
“The brain needs rest. The brain needs sleep. The brain needs to be properly nourished, and it needs to keep learning in a calm, effective way,” she says. “Women who make time to prioritize their brain health do better long term.”
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What Shriver’s Daily Brain Health Routine Looks Like
Of course, Shriver practices what she preaches, and she puts a lot of effort into maintaining her brain health.
“I wake up and write before my feet even touch the ground. I pray—that settles me. I go downstairs, get coffee and meditate, usually 10–15 minutes, sometimes longer depending on the day. Exercise is non-negotiable,” she tells Parade.
She thinks about getting enough protein, too, as well as strength training.
“I think about strength training differently, as something that’s good for my brain specifically,” she explains. “I’ll also play memory games with my granddaughter, who’s decided she’s going to help ‘Mama G’ with her memory.”
She also goes to the dentist every three months, gets her hearing checked, stays on top of her blood sugar, stays socially engaged and makes sure to keep learning new things.
“I just learned mahjong,” she says. “I also try to make sure I’m not isolated, especially since I’m single; I organize dinners rather than let myself sit home alone. And I try to stay connected to a purpose larger than myself, which really helps me stay motivated to be healthy enough to do the work.”
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What she’s really focused on now, which she says is new for her, is having more fun. “I’ve worked hard my whole life on pretty serious subjects, and I’m trying to bring more laughter and joy into my life and my work,” she says. “I’m trying to be less busy to be busy.”
What She Wants Anyone With an Alzheimer’s Diagnosis To Know
Aiming for prevention through lifestyle factors is crucial, but Shriver also wants people to know that there are things you can do once you get a diagnosis.
“There are medication options they should discuss with their doctor—there’s a blood test available now, too,” she says. “It’s an individual decision, made as a family or by the person themselves, and it depends on where they live and their neurologist’s guidance, but there are effective drugs available.”
Beyond medication, she says that even once you have a diagnosis, making positive lifestyle choices can help slow the progression.
“Exercise is very important, along with things like art classes and music, staying engaged, and staying in community as long as possible,” she says. “And not having shame about the diagnosis matters—as a society, the more people speak openly about having Alzheimer’s and ask to be treated like anyone else, the more that takes the pressure out of it.”
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Maria Shriver, journalist, activist and founder of the non-profit organization The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement Women get Alzheimer’s more often than men: Five things the science tells us, Stanford Medicine.Hence then, the article about maria shriver is begging you to stop this one habit for your brain health exclusive was published today ( ) and is available on Parade ( Saudi Arabia ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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