Chris Hemsworth Learns He’s Genetically Predisposed to Alzheimer’s: ‘It Affects the Rest of Your Life’

Chris Hemsworth has made a significant discovery.

While filming his documentaries for National Geographic, Limitlessthe 39-year-old actor learned he had a higher than average chance of developing Alzheimer’s after discovering he has two copies of the APOE4 gene, which is linked to an increased risk of the neurodegenerative disease.

“They took all my blood work and ran a series of tests and the plan was to share all the results with me on camera and then talk about how you can improve this and that,” Hemsworth said vanity fair of the fourth episode entitled “Memory” in which a doctor tested him and told him the news on camera.

When they heard the news that Thor star said he had a hard time coming to terms with the information.

“Most of us avoid talking about death,” he explained. “Then all of a sudden it’s being said that some big indicators are actually pointing to it This As the route that will happen, reality sinks into it. your own mortality.

According to a Stanford 2022 study, “About 25% of people of European descent have a copy of APOE4, more than doubling their chances of developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Another 2% to 3% of people have two copies of APOE4 variant, making them 8 to 10 times more likely to get the disease.”

Hemsworth says his grandfather is currently living with the disease. Although he has not seen him for several years, he relies on family members to update him on his health.

“Some days he’s quite cheerful and he’ll give you a big hug, but my mom said … he’s just a really friendly guy,” he said of his grandfather. “I’m not sure he really remembers much anymore and he’s slipping in and out of Dutch, which is his original language, so he’ll speak Dutch and English and then a mash-up and then maybe some other new ones too Words .”

At one point, Hemsworth said the doctor who gave him the test was concerned about delivering his results on camera. The actor was even “offered a version of the episode where we Not talk about it,” but after thinking about how it might help others, he decided to approve the scene.

The story goes on

“My corporation [with the episode] I just didn’t want to manipulate it and over-dramatize it and make it kind of a hokey attack on empathy or whatever for entertainment,” Hemsworth said.

“If this is a motivator for people to take better care of themselves and also to understand that there are steps you can take, then fantastic,” he added. “If you look at Alzheimer’s prevention, the advantage of taking preventive measures is that they affect the rest of your life. If you have a preposition for cardiovascular disease, cancer, or anything, it’s all about sleep management, stress management, diet, exercise, and fitness. It’s all the same tools that need to be applied in a consistent way.”

Though the news came as a shock, Hemsworth says it only motivated him to live life to the fullest.

“It’s not like I got my resignation, and it is – and it’s done in a couple of months,” he explained. “Fortunately, it’s not quite that situation. One day I’m sure I’ll address it [with my kids]. You probably want to test yourself and [find out,] ‘Are you in the category that will be sensitive to this or not?'”

“Live with as much gratitude and love of life as you can,” he advises. “You don’t know when your time is up, you don’t know what tomorrow is, so live it to the fullest. Whether any of this information helps you live longer or not, it’s about living better now. Whatever you do right, benefiting your future self now means having a tremendous advantage in your present self.”

Wellness, parenting, body image and more: get to know it who Behind huh with the Yahoo Life newsletter. Sign up here.