How helping others protects aging brains
In article and video below, researchers uncover a new way to protect our brain function as we age
Add meaningful social activities to ways to prevent brain atrophy, alongside regular exercise and healthy diet, according to research out of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
In an exclusive Medcan online seminar held in November 2016, study leader Michelle Carlson, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Mental Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, shared how associated with aging stopped in the volunteers aged 60 or older who were involved in programs benefiting others. A reversal in brain shrinkage was observed in the male volunteers.
The research studied participants in the Baltimore Experience Corps, a program that brings retired people into public schools to serve as mentors to young children through literacy programs, library assistance and supporting children with behavioural issues.
“Someone once said to me that being in this program removed the cobwebs from her brain and this study shows that is exactly what is happening,” says Carlson. “By helping others, participants are helping themselves in ways beyond just feeding their souls. They are helping their brains. The brain shrinks as part of aging, but with this program we appear to have stopped that shrinkage and are reversing part of the aging process.”
Normal brain shrinkage reversed
According to Carlson, the memory centre in the brains of seniors maintained their size and, in men, grew modestly after two years in a program that engaged them in meaningful and social activities. It was also helping to increase and sustain the levels of exercise outside of the volunteer activity itself.
Those participants with larger increases in the brain’s volume over two years also saw the greatest improvements on memory tests, showing a direct correlation between brain volume and the reversal of a type of cognitive decline linked to increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease.
Redefining the best type of activity for your brain
Activity with generative purpose (e.g., giving back to others) and functional purposes may confer greater neurocognitive benefits than exercise alone.
“We’re not training them on one skill, like doing crossword puzzles,” she says. “We’re embedding complexity and novelty into their daily lives, something that tends to disappear once people retire. The same things that benefit us at 5, 10, 25, 35 – contact with others, meaningful work – are certain to benefit us as we age.”
Other elements of Dr. Carlson’s presentation touched upon how physical activity can augment mental processing speed and the differing protective impact of indoor exercise versus outdoor exercise. The full presentation can be viewed here.
In this video of her full Medcan online seminar, Dr. Carlson discusses what research says about preserving cognitive and brain health through active engagement.
