It is called MIND-Matosinhos and aims to help prevent cognitive decline in the citizens of the municipality of Matosinhos.
How? Through a free, community-based programme that includes five non-pharmacological interventions that help prevent memory loss and consist of physical exercise, cognitive training, dietary education, memory loss adjustment and assessment and correction of hearing problems.
The project, which is currently recruiting participants, is coordinated by the Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto (ISPUP), and has the following partners: Câmara Municipal de Matosinhos (social investor in the project), Unidade Local de Saúde de Matosinhos, Faculdade de Medicina da U.Porto, Faculdade de Ciências da Nutrição e Alimentação da U.Porto, Faculdade de Desporto da U.Porto, Neuroinova Lda. and the Sociedade Portuguesa do Acidente Vascular Cerebral.
MIND-Matosinhos was based on the MIND study implemented in the ACES-Porto Ocidental in 2019, in which ISPUP also participated. This project was aimed at users in the Porto Ocidental area.
The project team, led by ISPUP researcher Vítor Tedim Cruz, explains that “since there are still no medications that can stabilise cognitive performance in individuals with mild cognitive impairment, in order to prevent their progression to dementia, MIND-Matosinhos is evaluating the impact of non-pharmacological interventions to prevent cognitive decline.”
All people with complaints of memory loss who live in Matosinhos and/or are registered at a Family Health Unit of the Local Health Unit of Matosinhos are eligible to participate in the MIND-Matosinhos project.
Participants must be aged between 18 and 85 years old, have at least 4 years of schooling, be able to carry out activities of daily living independently, and have no contraindications for physical activity, nor have been previously diagnosed with dementia or severe disability.
The activities programmed in this project are being carried out in various locations situated in the different Parish Councils of the Matosinhos municipality and also at the Faculdade de Ciências da Nutrição e Alimentação da U.Porto.
Those interested in joining the programme can do so by emailing mind.matosinhos@ispup.up.pt or by calling 912371271. The project activities can also be followed through the social networks Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube channel.
The project MIND-Matosinhos: Multiple Interventions to Prevent Cognitive Decline is supported by Portugal Inovação Social and co-financed by the Operational Programme Social Inclusion and Employment, Portugal 2020 and the European Union through the European Social Fund (POISE-03-4639-FSE-000793).
