A retired maths teacher from St Albans is helping people cope with dementia.

Gareth Rowlands, 61, who taught maths for more than 30 years in Nairobi and London, has created a series of booklets to stimulate the minds of those with dementia, that can be downloaded for free online.

The exercises, which involve creating as many words as possible from a single word, have proven to be very popular with residential care homes and Alzheimer’s societies in Britain and abroad.

Now available in Cyprus, Canada, Pakistan, Mauritius and Kenya, Mr Rowlands, of Maslen Road, said “there is no end” to the distribution and he wants to help “as many people in as many places as possible”.

Mr Rowlands said: “This is such rewarding work – I can see the quality of people’s lives improving and how much people are enjoying the exercises.

“People keep calling me and telling me how many words they have found, and I think that’s just fantastic – I’m so happy that people are so engaged with the booklets.

“I’ve been doing this for about ten years – when I go on holiday abroad I always try and set up meetings with relevant people there and give them my leaflets.

“The good thing about them is that they are easy to access and easy to use. Carers are so busy.

"They want something they can lay their hands on very easily and these can be used for five minutes or so every day; they’re ideal.”

However, the exercises are not only designed for elderly people or those suffering with dementia.

Mr Rowlands said ten minutes worth of brain training every day can prevent the onset of dementia.

He said: “Even people who aren’t old and who aren’t suffering any memory loss should try the exercises or at least do some sort of puzzle each day.

“Spending between five and ten minutes each day stimulating the brain can really make a difference in the long run. People need to keep their brains active.”

Mr Rowlands has also written maths textbooks for countries in Africa, the Middle East, the Far East, South East Asia and the Caribbean territories, and is currently working on a four-book project for primary schools in Rwanda.

He said: “These books have to relate to the day-to-day lives of the Rwandan students.

"Not all students enjoy maths, but by making it more relevant and involving the students more, you can make the subject more interesting and improve the application of their skills.”

To download the exercises and to get more information go to: http://www.battledementia.co.uk/