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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2020 Sep 1.
Published in final edited form as: JAMA. 2019 Oct 22;322(16):1589–1599. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.4782

Box 3. Non-pharmacologic approaches to dementia.

• Cognitively stimulating activities (e.g., reading, games)
• Physical exercise (e.g., aerobic and anaerobic)
• Social interactions with others (e.g., family events)
• Healthy diet such as the Mediterranean diet (e.g., high in green leafy vegetables)
• Adequate sleep (e.g., uninterrupted sleep and with sufficient number of hours)
• Proper personal hygiene (e.g., regular bathing)
• Safety, including inside the home (e.g., with kitchen appliances) and outside (e.g., driving)
• Medical and advances care directives (e.g., designation of power of attorney)
• Long-term health care planning (e.g., for living arrangement in the late stage of dementia)
• Financial planning (e.g., for allocation of assets)
• Effective communication (e.g., for expressing needs and desires, such as with visual aids)
• Psychological health (e.g., participating in personally meaningful activities such as playing music)