Cognitive Function Decline With Aging Can Start Early
The decline of the brain is all the more reason to work harder on rejuvenation biotechnology and make better lifestyle choices: "researchers found a 3.6% decline in mental reasoning in women and men aged 45-49. They assessed the memory, vocabulary and comprehension skills of 7,000 men and women aged 45 to 70 over 10 years. ... Previous research had suggested that cognitive decline does not begin much before the age of 60. But the results of this study show that it could in fact begin in middle age. This is important, the researchers say, because dementia treatments are more likely to work at the time when individuals start to experience mental impairment. The results of the tests show that cognitive scores declined in all categories except vocabulary - and there was a faster decline in older people. The study found a 9.6% decline in mental reasoning in men aged 65-70 and a 7.4% decline for women of the same age. ... We now need to look at who experiences cognitive decline more than the average and how we stop the decline. Some level of prevention is definitely possible. Rates of dementia are going to soar and health behaviours like smoking and physical activity are linked to levels of cognitive function. It's important to identify the risk factors early. If the disease has started in an individual's 50s but we only start looking at risk in their 60s, then how do you start separating cause and effect? ... Previous research suggests that our health in mid-life affects our risk of dementia as we age, and these findings give us all an extra reason to stick to our New Year's resolutions. Although we don't yet have a sure-fire way to prevent dementia, we do know that simple lifestyle changes - such as eating a healthy diet, not smoking, and keeping blood pressure and cholesterol in check - can all reduce the risk of dementia."