Aging Research
Making Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Late-Life Depression Risk
Life is full of challenges and most of us will experience occasional periods of sadness. However, prolonged sadness coupled with other symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, feelings of guilt, loss of interest in things that used to produce pleasure, ...
A Healthy Brain: Use It or Lose It!
If you want strong muscles, you need to do a lot of physical activity, like regular exercise, strength training, or weight lifting. “Use it or lose it” is a phrase that refers to building and maintaining strong muscles.
Dementia Risk: Is It Nature or Nurture?
There has long been a debate as to whether most of the factors that make us who we are come from genetic or environmental influences—the so-called “nature vs. nurture” debate. Scientists seem to agree that both genetic influences (what we’re born with) AN...
Maximizing Quality of Life for Persons with Dementia
When loved ones develop Alzheimer’s disease or another kind of dementia, spouses and other family members often assist with daily needs, like driving, shopping, and eventually even personal care (feeding, bathing, and dressing). Family care arrangements a...
Is Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia the Same Thing? Clarifying Types and Symptoms of Dementia
Dementia is not a term that refers to just one disease (Alzheimer’s Association, 2016). The term dementia is a label for a number of symptoms related to the loss of cognitive (brain) function. Symptoms include a decline in memory or other thinking and pro...
Psychological Stress Among Risks for Alzheimer’s Disease
Stress as a normal part of life. None of us gets through life without stress. “Stress” is how the human body and mind respond to anything that creates some kind of threat or danger (Selye, 1956). There are many kinds of events or experiences in our lives ...
Late-Life Depression
Having the occasional period of feeling sad or blue, which then resolves on its own is a normal part of life and is not considered depression. When symptoms become more common, or more intense, however they should not be ignored. A physician, psychiatrist...
Are My Memory Changes Normal?
As the human body ages, so does the brain, even with normal healthy aging. Some older adults may begin to notice that it is now taking a little longer to learn new things, or they have become a little forgetful. They may misplace things like keys or glass...