Kimel Family Centre for Brain Health and Wellness

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Physical Activity: Participants can chose (with input from a kinesiologist as required) from courses of varying intensity in our gym, warm water pool, or classrooms.

Brain-healthy Eating: Participants take five foundational courses: Brain-healthy eating, Healthy protein choices, Colour your diet: Maximize the benefits of fruits and vegetables; Interpreting nutrition facts labels; and Salt and sugar: How much is too much? They are also encouraged to take additional nutrition programs.

Cognitive Engagement: Participants can sign up for any lecture, discussion group, book club, creative arts program, etc. linked to the Cognitive Engagement risk factor.

Social Connections: Social Connections are baked into all other programming. Our instructors are trained in how to foster connections among participants, through peer coaching, ice-breakers, etc., and are asked to leave some time at the beginning and end of programs for participants to chat. We also hold special social events such as game nights.

Mental Wellbeing: Participants are encouraged to enroll in one a week of relevant programming (e.g., meditation, relaxation).

Study summary

Participants (n=450; aged 50+; without a diagnosis of dementia; sufficiently fluent in English to complete the assessments and engage in programming) receive a comprehensive dementia risk assessment, including nonmodifiable and modifiable risk factors, from which they receive a Personalized Dementia Risk Report and Program Strategy, indicating their health conditions increasing and their risk level in five modifiable risk domains: physical activity, brain- healthy eating, cognitive engagement, social connections, and mental wellbeing. Equipped with this information, participants enroll in programs within the Centre to address their risk factors. Changes to their dementia risk, cognition, and Personalized Program Strategy are communicated through re-assessments of risk factors every six months (risk and cognition) and every year (comprehensive assessment).

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Physical Activity — Every six months over two years.
  Hours of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a week, as determined by the CHAMPS (0 - 168, with higher scores indicating greater activity).
• Cognition — We expect to see this at the two year mark.
  We expect cognition to be maintained or improved, as assessed by Cogniciti's Brain Health Assessment, to the extent that participants adhere to their Personalized Program Strategy.
• Brain-Healthy Eating — Every six months over two years.
  Brain-healthy eating as assessed by the Brain Health Food Guide derived Eating Pattern Self-Assessment (range 0 - 15, with higher scores indicating greater adherence to the Brain Health Food Guide).
• Cognitive Engagement — Every six months over two years.
  Amount of engagement in higher-order cognitively engaging activities, as assessed by the Higher Cognition subscale of the Florida Cognitive Activities Scale (range 0-40, with higher scores indicated greater engagement).
• Social Connections — Every six months over two years.
  Degree of loneliness as assessed by the UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3; range = 0-80, where higher scores indicate greater loneliness).
• Mental Wellbeing — Every six months over two years.
  A composite of depression, anxiety, and (dis)stress from the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), as well as perceived stress from the Perceived Stress Scale (with each subscale converted to a percentage of maximum and summed; range: 0 - 400).
• Diastolic Blood Pressure — Every year over two years.
  Diastolic Blood Pressure, which lower numbers indicated better blood pressure.
• Systolic Blood Pressure — Every year over two years.
  Systolic Blood Pressure, where lower numbers indicate better blood pressure
• Percent body fat — Every year over two years.
  Percent body fat as determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), where lower numbers indicate less body fat.
• Low density lipoprotein — Every year over two years.
  Low density lipoprotein, assessed via blood draw, where lower numbers indicate less cholesterol.
• C-reactive protein — Every year over two years.
  C-reactive protein, assessed via blood draw, where lower numbers indicate less inflammation.
• Interleukin-6 — Every year over two years.
  Interleukin-6, assessed via blood draw, where lower numbers indicate less inflammation.
• HbA1c — Every year over two years.
  Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c), measured through blood draw, where lower numbers indicate less blood sugar.
• Cognition — Every six months over two years.
  Cognition, assessed as an age- and sex-adjusted percentile on the Brain Health Assessment (an online cognitive assessment of episodic memory, working memory, and executive functioning).

Trial sites (1)

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