Studies and research have revealed that brain changes that can pave the way toward dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and cognitive decline begin in the forties, not the seventies or eighties, according to what is commonly believed.
Researchers believe that middle age is the appropriate age to study the brain, because efforts to study dementia in the elderly have largely failed, according to the newspaper.Wall Street Journal“American.
Ahmed Hariri, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University in the United States, believes that middle age is an appropriate age to study the brain. He says, “Attempts to study the brain at advanced ages are not effective, because they are done too late, and after a lot of damage has accumulated in the brains.” .
Specialists point out that studying the brain in middle age, and early intervention to improve brain health, may help avoid dementia in advanced years.
Researchers confirm that exercising regularly, getting enough sleep, and engaging in activities that keep the mind active are all steps that can help combat dementia later in life.
The newspaper quoted Terry Moffitt, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, as saying, “Midlife is the appropriate time to modify lifestyle and obtain effective treatment in old age.”
What happens in middle age?
The Wall Street Journal touched on a study conducted by Sebastian Hansen, a doctoral student at University College Cork in Ireland, in March on brain aging.
Hansen believes that parts of the brain begin to change faster during middle age, and he points out that the amount of white matter in the brain, which represents the connections between brain regions, decreases in the forties and fifties.
“This is likely to slow processing speed and discrimination, which may have additional effects on perception and the ability to store new information,” he says.
“People retain their verbal language skills throughout their lives, but the speed with which they process information and their ability to solve new problems related to logic and reasoning gradually decline with age,” Moffitt points out.
Studies and research have revealed that certain groups of people lose cognitive function faster during middle age, and this includes people who began using cannabis or tobacco in their teens and continued using it into their forties. It includes people who have had high levels of toxic lead in their blood since childhood.
“Not everyone believes that middle age represents a sharp turning point in brain health,” the newspaper reported, citing David Knopman, a professor of neuroscience in Minnesota, USA.
He adds, “Processing speed is the cognitive function that declines more with age, but this decline occurs gradually and varies from person to person.”
What can you do?
“Keeping your heart healthy in middle age is the best way to avoid cognitive decline,” Knobman says, noting that “brain and heart health are closely related.”
“The same things that can lead to clogged arteries in the heart can affect the arteries in the brain, hindering blood flow and oxygen delivery,” he added.
In the newspaper’s opinion, there are no proven ways to prevent dementia, but steps that help the mind and heart include regular exercise, following a healthy diet, not smoking, treating sleep disorders, and avoiding diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and obesity.
Knobman says, “It is important to stay active and socially and mentally engaged, and it is also good to work in a challenging environment, because this activates the brain, which may give better results.”
The newspaper quoted Christine Beattie, a psychology researcher at the University of Oslo in Norway, as saying: “There is no reason to wait until middle age to start making health improvements.”
“Many of the lifestyle changes that will put you on a better path into old age can start before middle age,” Betty added.
2024-04-09 14:30:27
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