Thor's Chris Hemsworth opens up about Alzheimer's test results
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Thor star Chris Hemsworth has opened up about his previous health diagnosis, which saw the actor discover he was at a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
The Australian actor made the discovery during his Disney+ series Limitless, with tests concluding that he was eight to 10 times more likely to develop the disease.
Following his previously announced hiatus, Hemsworth spoke with Men's Health about the diagnosis, revealing that he had started incorporating brain exercises into his training program.
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"I'm incorporating more solitude into my life," he said. "I've always been pretty consistent with my exercise commitments, but lately, I've really felt the importance of taking time for yourself without any outside voice or stimulation and making time for stillness."
Hemsworth continued: "I do a lot of meditation and breath work, mostly during sauna and ice bath routines. My favourite mindfulness work comes from the immersion in physical activities, [which] allow me to be fully present and force me out of my head and into my body."
He also shared that he has a "more consistent approach" to sleep nowadays.
"[I] try to stay off screens an hour before bed — reading most nights definitely helps," the actor noted. "I work on not being attached to every thought and not being the observer to the noise — just stepping back from the internal chatter."
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Earlier this year, Hemsworth commented on reports that he was considering retiring from acting following the diagnosis, with the star explaining that the press had conflated two separate events.
"Those two headlines got coupled together, that I was taking time off because of the genetic predisposition to Alzheimer's," he clarified. "That experience and that show [Limitless] made me go, 'Oh wow, none of us are invincible.' It kind of slams you into the moment.
"You start asking bigger questions, and you think, 'I need to slow down and just experience this moment now and not have the years race by'. It was a positive in that sense, but it got a little overdramatized [that] I was potentially retiring because of this — [it] just isn't the case.
All four Thor movies are available to stream now on Disney+.
More information about Alzheimer's is available on the NHS and Alzheimer's Society websites. Resources for readers in the US are available via the National Institutes of Health.
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