When I was younger, I worked at a nursing home during vacations. It was such a great learning experience, and getting to know the people that lived there provided valuable insight into the lives of the elderly population. The elderly population is very diverse. Some were well into their 90s and still extremely active, while others were less fortunate. Some needed only guidance, while others needed more assistance. I am fortunate to still have two very active grandparents in my life: my Grandma (my mom's mother) and my Bestefar (my dad's father). Aren't they the cutest?
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| Picture taken at my Bestefar's 90th birthday celebration in 2013 |
Ok, blog readers, I think it's about time that future psychologist Bjerke spreads some of her acquired knowledge. I can't go to school for this many years (doesn't it seem like forever?), and not share some of this interesting stuff. Get excited!
Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, and it is characterized by the formation of neurofibrillary tangles and amyloid plaques in the brain. Autopsy is the only way to diagnose AD (in all certainty). An early study found that the brains of 10 cognitively normal elderly women (of 137) had advanced AD pathology at autopsy. Later studies have found that 25% to 67% of subjects that are characterized as cognitively normal meet pathological criteria for dementia at autopsy. This means that they function normally even though they have plenty of signs of disease in the brain.
Now I'm sure you're thinking: "Susanna, how in the world can they function normally when they have lots of disease in their brain?" Well, my dear friends, it is most likely because they have high cognitive reserve! I find the concept of cognitive reserve is SO interesting, and I'm doing my best to spread the word.
Cognitive reserve means that the brain is able to optimize or maximize cognitive performance despite the presence of disease/pathology in the brain. The brain does this through flexible use of the brain’s networks.
Studies have shown that there are many factors that affect cognitive reserve (CR):
- Long-education (more than seven years)
- Social, intellectual, and physical engagement
- Interpersonal skills
- IQ (verbal comprehension in particular)
- Multilingualism
Look at the graph below. Notice where the line breaks and starts going down. See how the slope starts further to the right and is steeper for the person with high CR? People with higher CR (compared to ones with lower CR) may show signs of AD later in life, however, they may decline faster after they are diagnosed. Initially, a "faster decline" may sound like a bad thing. CR doesn't make it so you don't get AD altogether, it just makes it so that you function (clinically) for longer. CR just postpones the disease, and gives the person more healthy years.
I apologize for the rambling and all the details, but it's such an interesting concept. The most important thing: cognitive reserve continues to be influenced throughout the lifespan. So it doesn't matter how old you are: be physically active, socialize with others, learn a new language or skill, read books... Use your brain diligently! You can influence how you function later in life! What better motivation could one need?
We learned a lot about the aging process last semester at UiT. Beside the concept of CR, we learned that exercise is one of the most beneficial things one can do to promote successful aging. A vast amount of research has confirmed this. I recently finished the book "Spark - The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain" by psychiatrist John Ratey. It was a fascinating book that illustrated (through empirical research) how exercise is the best defence against things like depression, anxiety, ADD, and cognitive decline. I feel like in today's society a lot of the focus around exercise is just wanting to look good. It's very motivating knowing that exercise is also good for the brain and will help you function later in life. (Let's be honest - the fact that clothes fit better is obviously a good thing, too).
I've been fortunate to have people in my life that have always emphasized the importance of staying active. Having parents that were active made me want to be active (I'm sure there are studies that look into the correlation between parent and child activity levels... But I'm not about to start looking for that right now. I should technically be studying for a midterm right now).
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| My dad in a race in Våle, Norway (circa 1969) |
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| Hurry up, Papa! |
Ideally, I would tell you I signed up for a marathon, but alas... I "only" signed up for a 10K (6.2 miles). That's a good starting point, right? I signed up with my spontaneous friend, Sydney. She is great, and she totally understands that I need to make decisions like this immediately or else I will typically overthink things. When I asked her if she wanted to run a 10k with me yesterday she said yes, and within an hour we had found the race we wanted to sign up for. Thankfully, she agreed that we needed to sign up before either of us could change our mind. Today was the day. We're signed up, and ready to go. Oh. My. Goodness.
On June 1st, 2014, we will be participating in our first 10K. We will be running around Sydney with thousands of others in order to raise money for the treatment and management of MS (Multiple Sclerosis). MS is a chronic and often debilitating disease which attacks the central nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves). No two cases of MS are identical, but symptoms can include: fatigue, cognitive difficulties, loss of balance and coordination, tremors, and even paralysis.
Our goal is to raise $250 each before the run. If you would like to donate money to this extremely great cause, please click here. Thank you in advance for your generosity!
Nighty night from Australia!
Love,
Suzy
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