"I've always looked after my health but watching what my mum went through was a terrible reminder of just how important it is,"he said.
"This suggests frailty is not merely a consequence of undetected dementia but contributes to its onset,"Dr Ward said.
- Good nutrition — as people get older, their protein requirements increase, so getting adequate protein is vital for maintaining muscle mass and strength
- Exercise — all exercise is good, but in terms of preventing frailty, strength-based exercises are the most beneficial
- Appropriate medications — any changes to medications should only be made in close consultation with your doctor, but medications that help to control things like chronic conditions should be optimised
- Good social connection — having a strong social network to provide emotional support is vital to maintaining healthy brain function
"If we can detect that [people] do have frailty and they don't have dementia yet ... these might be good targets for us actually to put some interventions in place,"she said.