Memory Loss
You’re Already Losing Your Mind -
Memory problems linked to old age may actually begin years earlier
Cindy Kuzma, Men's Health
Is 45 the new 60? It could be, at least when it comes to memory loss. A new study finds problems with thinking and memory usually linked to old age may actually begin years earlier. Researchers followed more than 7,000 British civil servants age 45 to 70 for 10 years, testing skills like vocabulary, reasoning and memory along the way. Scores on every test except vocabulary dropped during the study period, even for the youngest participants. “We show, for the first time, that cognitive decline is evident in adults aged 45 to 49,” says study author Archana Singh-Manoux, Ph.D., of Hôpital Paul Brousse in France. For example, scores on reasoning tests — which involve identifying patterns in groups of numbers and words — dropped 3.6 percent for men in this age group. “The understanding so far had been that there was no cognitive decline before the age of 60.”
How You Can Ward Off Alzheimer’s
But that doesn’t mean your brain turns to mush the minute you hop over the hill. “Yes, certain cognitive abilities change with aging,” says Sandra Bond Chapman, Ph.D., founder and chief director of the Center for BrainHealth at The University of Texas at Dallas. You might not be able to rattle off your sales figures, learn a new computer program, or recall the details of a client meeting quite as well as when you were younger. But don’t worry: Other valuable thinking skills — such as sifting through information to find what’s important and using advanced reasoning to integrate new ideas — can be maintained or even improved through the years, she says. What’s more, you can take steps to reduce what Chapman calls “cognitive slippage.” Here are 5 ways to boost your brainpower as you age.
Hit the gym
Studies continue to link physical activity to brain benefits. The latest: In a 2011 report in Archives of Internal Medicine, 17 percent of the sedentary adults developed memory
problems over five years. Only 2 percent of active people did. Experts recommend at least 30 minutes of motion a day, five days a week.
Schedule a poker night with the guys
Eat out, volunteer, watch the Super Bowl at your buddy’s place, join a club, take a group trip. People who do these things slow down cognitive decline by about 70 percent, according to a Rush University study.
Keep learning
“Synthesize meanings from work assignments, articles and books read, and movies watched,” Chapman says. “Discussing deeper meanings pushes the power of your brain’s frontal lobe more than reciting a litany of facts.”
Prevent Heart Attacks and Alzheimer’s
Know your profile
Ask your doctor or go online to calculate your 10-year risk of getting heart disease. A study in the European Heart Journal showed for every 10 percent increase in heart risk, men’s odds of experiencing cognitive decline also increased. The same habits that help your heart — working out, eating right, and staying at a healthy weight — may
also protect your thinking, explains Singh-Manoux.
Get some shuteye
A good night’s rest — seven to eight hours — helps your brain consolidate information, Chapman says. And see your doctor if you snore. You might have sleep apnea, a condition linked to cognitive problems. However, treating it reverses changes in your brain and improves memory, according to a study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
And in my case 39...oh wait...that could be lack of sleep...
Memory problems linked to old age may actually begin years earlier
Cindy Kuzma, Men's Health
Is 45 the new 60? It could be, at least when it comes to memory loss. A new study finds problems with thinking and memory usually linked to old age may actually begin years earlier. Researchers followed more than 7,000 British civil servants age 45 to 70 for 10 years, testing skills like vocabulary, reasoning and memory along the way. Scores on every test except vocabulary dropped during the study period, even for the youngest participants. “We show, for the first time, that cognitive decline is evident in adults aged 45 to 49,” says study author Archana Singh-Manoux, Ph.D., of Hôpital Paul Brousse in France. For example, scores on reasoning tests — which involve identifying patterns in groups of numbers and words — dropped 3.6 percent for men in this age group. “The understanding so far had been that there was no cognitive decline before the age of 60.”
How You Can Ward Off Alzheimer’s
But that doesn’t mean your brain turns to mush the minute you hop over the hill. “Yes, certain cognitive abilities change with aging,” says Sandra Bond Chapman, Ph.D., founder and chief director of the Center for BrainHealth at The University of Texas at Dallas. You might not be able to rattle off your sales figures, learn a new computer program, or recall the details of a client meeting quite as well as when you were younger. But don’t worry: Other valuable thinking skills — such as sifting through information to find what’s important and using advanced reasoning to integrate new ideas — can be maintained or even improved through the years, she says. What’s more, you can take steps to reduce what Chapman calls “cognitive slippage.” Here are 5 ways to boost your brainpower as you age.
Hit the gym
Studies continue to link physical activity to brain benefits. The latest: In a 2011 report in Archives of Internal Medicine, 17 percent of the sedentary adults developed memory
problems over five years. Only 2 percent of active people did. Experts recommend at least 30 minutes of motion a day, five days a week.
Schedule a poker night with the guys
Eat out, volunteer, watch the Super Bowl at your buddy’s place, join a club, take a group trip. People who do these things slow down cognitive decline by about 70 percent, according to a Rush University study.
Keep learning
“Synthesize meanings from work assignments, articles and books read, and movies watched,” Chapman says. “Discussing deeper meanings pushes the power of your brain’s frontal lobe more than reciting a litany of facts.”
Prevent Heart Attacks and Alzheimer’s
Know your profile
Ask your doctor or go online to calculate your 10-year risk of getting heart disease. A study in the European Heart Journal showed for every 10 percent increase in heart risk, men’s odds of experiencing cognitive decline also increased. The same habits that help your heart — working out, eating right, and staying at a healthy weight — may
also protect your thinking, explains Singh-Manoux.
Get some shuteye
A good night’s rest — seven to eight hours — helps your brain consolidate information, Chapman says. And see your doctor if you snore. You might have sleep apnea, a condition linked to cognitive problems. However, treating it reverses changes in your brain and improves memory, according to a study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
And in my case 39...oh wait...that could be lack of sleep...
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