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THE BRAIN BEGINS to lose its mental dexterity from as young as age 45 – not 60 as previously thought – according to new research.
Cognitive functions like memory, comprehension skills and reasoning may begin to decline from the age of just 45, according to the results of the Whitehall II study – which examined more than 7,000 UK civil servants aged between 45 and 70.
As part of the study, the 5,000 men and 2,000 women were asked to take part in verbal and written tests on three occasions over a period of 10 years. The researchers, led by Archana Singh-Manoux from the Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health in France and University College London in the UK, expected to see some deterioration of memory and thinking skills in the older age group, but were surprised to note the level of cognitive decline in the younger group.
Researchers noted a 3.6 per cent decline of the mental reasoning of both men and women aged between 45 to 49.
As people aged, a difference in the rate of decline was noted; men aged between 65 to 70 showed a 9.6 per cent decline, while women of the same age showed a 7.4 per cent decline.
Identifying the point at which cognitive decline begins is important, researchers explained, because individuals whose brains deteriorate most rapidly may be more likely to develop dementia in later life. Treatment is also more likely to work if applied as soon as a loss of mental dexterity is noticed.
“This finding potentially has profound implications for prevention of dementia, and public health… efforts to prevent dementia may need to start in adults as young as 45,” wrote Francine Grodstein, an associate professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston in an editorial accompanying the findings.
“study [..] examined more than 7,000 UK civil servants” — so the actual result is they’re mindless drones, how’s that a discovery?
Unlike Irish civil servants who are free thinking, risk taking, formula four brained intellectuals?
Yeah right.
Sounds like ammunition for ageism when the “deterioration” has not been definitively quantified. I would hasten to add that the best known thinkers Hawkens etc were well over 45 when they produced their most profound work…
Agreed, sounds like pants research.
Most of the Dáil is over 45 :D
Surely you are not saying that they are affected! They don’t have a problem when making decisions that affect themselves. The always decide on what benefits them!
Brain my work poperly not…?
Treat your brain like any other muscle, work on it.
My grandparents uncle waa
*posted too early…
… Was extremely sharp in his 90s cause he spent so much time doing crosswords and puzzles.
Its easy to tell the difference between an old person who works hard on keeping their brain in tact, and someone that doesn’t. When talking to the former you can have a quality conversation.
Reading crosswords etc phyiscal exercise for the brain.
I met a last who was 104 and still beating all the carers in the nursing home at poker. And an 86 year old who wants to get online. I’ve met some seriously amazing people through my work (I love my job!!)
A last? A lady.. Stupid phone..
I worked in a civil architects office when I was at uni in england, warrington borough council. There were 2 people in an office of over 20 people that I could have a decent conversation with. It’s hardly a conclusive piece of research, more like a feasibility study at best. I have an uncle of over 70 who has in the last 2 years started using computers. He’s is doing all kinds of research now on the ww2 ships that he was on during the war. Brain function loss my arse!
That’s me well and truly fucked then! Ah well was nice when I had it!!!
I work with the elderly. I find people who worked in high stress jobs tend to wind up with dementia. People who worry a lot too. People with a more positive outlook on life seem to fare better. Purely anecdotal I know but in light of some relatively recent research regarding B vitamins and Alzheimer’s (pharmaceutical industry working on a drug based on vitamin B6) I found it interesting..
When you are stressed your body burns through B complex vitamins, they’re required for brain function, detoxification of homocysteine (high levels of which are considered an indicator of many health complaints), and regulating blood sugar. They are water soluble and not stored in the body.. They’re usually found in fibrous foods and released in the colon by all those good bacteria you hear about..
Could there be a relationship? High stress = increased requirement for B vitamins..
Low levels of essential fatty acids (fish, seed and but oils) and medium chain triglycerides (coconuts, cocoa butter and some animal fats) and high levels of aluminium have all been noted in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients who tend to suffer from brain shrinkage (dehydration may be a factor too).
It’s not conclusive, but all of these things benefit health anyway, so it can do no harm to ensure that the diet is rich in these nutrients.
I was going to comment on this but I can’t remember what I was going to say
They obviously didn’t take account of the gallons of Blue Nun we drank in the 70′s!!
Interesting comment shanti !
Thank you, on reading it back I just wanted to make clear – high levels of aluminium are a bad thing, I hope no one took that up wrong!
Woo hoo! Finally I have an excuse backed up by research!
Oh just exercise the brain just like the body and you won’t see any decline in memory and general brain functioning!!!
Tell That To Warren Buffett.
45 eh? I think it sometimes happens a lot younger than that……not talking about myself….. obviously
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