Wellness Corner

As we start to get older, we often notice that our brain just doesn't seem to be working right. We lose our ability to focus. We have problems thinking as quickly on our feet as we used to. And although we attribute it to "getting older", we've never really known quite what was causing us to feel this way. New research may be able to provide part of the answer.

A recent study done at Harvard University shows that there is specific degeneration not in the brain itself but in the way that different parts of the brain communicate with one another as a person ages. Previously, researchers had looked at how white matter in the brain deteriorates with age and how different functions stop working. Much of this information has led to developments in understanding age-related diseases like Alzheimer's. This study went further and looked less at the individual structures within the brain and more at the way that those structures interact with one another.

What the study found was that brain systems that are separated from one another (such as functions driven by the back of the brain and functions driven by the front of the brain) have increased difficulty communicating with one another as the brain gets older. This helps to explain what's going on in the minds of older people who are otherwise healthy but are starting to lose their "sharpness". This study points researchers in the right direction of hopefully finding an eventual cure for the way that our minds sometimes deteriorate before our bodies do.

To prevent mental decline, adults should remain healthy and active into their later years. Anti-aging is all about keeping a young attitude and a young approach to life. By making sure to continually stimulate the mind and ask it to keep growing, adults may be able to keep the communication lines in the brain open for a number of additional years.

Question of the Day: What signs of aging have you noticed that might be attributed to a brain communication problem?

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