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Can You Rejuvenate an Older Brain? From the Neuroscience Lab to Real Life By Francine Toder
In another recent study, "among all U.S. adults, an estimated 41.0% of dementia cases were attributable to 12 risk factors …" including hypertension, obesity, and physical inactivity. So, any new activities stimulating the mind or body help ward off decline and maybe even dementia. Some techniques that rejuvenate blood may hold promise for improving the performance of the aging human brain in the future. Bruce Goldman, a writer for Stanford University's School of Medicine newsletter, reported that the losses in cognitive functioning that begin in midlife, between age 50 and 60, may not be inevitable.
We all understand that no magic elixir can stop or even slow the human brain or skeletal muscles from aging. But is that true? After two decades of research with mice, Tony Wyss-Coray, PhD, a neuroscientist at Stanford University, has some ideas about what might work. Follow-up trials with humans have indeed demonstrated the possibilities. According to Wyss-Coray, quoted in Stanford University's School of Medicine newsletter, Scope, "when we treated old mice with repeated intravenous infusions of young plasma (the liquid fraction of blood), these mice became smarter, performing more like young mice on multiple cognitive tests. Conversely, young mice exposed to aged blood or treated with aged plasma experienced accelerated aging of the brain and a loss of cognitive function." That means that, at least in the lab, for now, some techniques that rejuvenate blood may hold promise for improving the performance of the aging human brain in the future.
Physical exercise and managing everyday stress are the best ways to ward off cognitive decline.
Walking is a good example — a half-hour walking a dog or a solo stroll. Older adults can also use meditation or mindfulness while doing ordinary routines like washing dishes to lower blood pressure and manage body weight. Beyond that, some actions strengthen neuronal connections in the brain by simply taking up a new hobby. Learn that foreign language you never had time to do before. Play an instrument. Find a physical activity that you enjoy. Or do sudoku puzzles. Maybe your preferred method is cleaning your home, gardening, or taking a chair yoga class. Move your body and stretch your mind in what- ever ways bring you pleasure.
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