Memory Loss Down Among Educated Elderly
Here’s some good news for older Americans. Memory loss and thinking problems are decreasing amongst senior citizens according to a recent finding. From memory loss to dementia to Alzheimer’s disease, people over 70 are finding less difficulty with these problems. 
In fact, the prevalence went down by 3.5 percentage points between 1993 and 2002. Specialists cite the fact that older people today are much more likely to have higher education, economic status and better health care which all contribute to a healthier brain in later life.
The study was published in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia and compared people over age 70 in 2002 with those over the age of 70 in 1993.
During those interim years, school attendance, high school graduation rates and college or tech school enrollment all increased. Similarly, there was a greater availability of cholesterol-lowering drugs, blood pressure medications and other preventive cardiovascular medications during those years. A simple crossword puzzle each day was said to do wonders for maintaining cognitive health well into the future. Specialists cite a ‘use it or lose it’ philosophy which encourages seniors to get involved.
One dark side to all this great news, however, was that the gains may also be offset by new damage which has been coming as a result of a type 2 diabetes epidemic. This is something which continues to threaten the elderly and which also needs to be monitored even close in the coming years.
Source: University of Michigan
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um, I’m not 70 yet, but I’m having trouble processing your data: how has high school enrollment affected those who were [presumably] 60 in 1993 or 70 in 2002? lots of older people getting their GED?
I suppose you should seek treatment. The research was on the high school enrollment rate when they were of the age to attend school. If you look at the statistics and laws involving minors and mandatory schooling, they changed drastically in that decade between the two generations. This proves that education, even in your early years, does make a difference many more years down the line. We can only imagine the differences when we start comparing the elders of the 90’s to the elders of 2020 with the sharp increase in higher education!
I was glad to read this article about…about…what was it about again?
Great news. For all the rest still suffering, deep brain stimulation (DBS) be offer some help. It’s amazing how a surgeon’s mistake in the operating room led to this new utility for DBS: memory and learning — not just Parkinson’s (and perhaps depression and mood disorders).
Sincerely,
Shaheen
[...] better blog.]So according to a study in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia, (summarized here), memory loss and thinking problems are decreasing among those over 70. The researchers point to [...]
Ha!Ha!Ha! Steve you’re so funny! I read some articles somewhere here in the net that surfing the net actually improves the functions of the brain of the elderly. Maybe you can google it out.