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Lifestyle Effects on Memory & Cognition

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More evidence for the benefits of physical exercise for cognition, this time involving 9-10 year old children.

Brain imaging of 49 children aged 9-10 has found that those who were physically fit had a hippocampus significantly bigger (around 12%) than those who were not fit.

Many studies have now shown that walking helps older brains fight cognitive decline, but a new study shows that this is also associated with improved connectivity in important brain networks.

A study involving 65 older adults (59-80), who were very sedentary before the study (reporting less than two episodes of physical activity lasting 30 minutes or more in the previous six months), has found that those who joined a walking group improved their cognitive performance and the connectiv

A new study adds to the evidence that berries and other foods rich in polyphenols help your brain fight age-related cognitive decline.

A number of studies have found evidence that fruits and vegetables help fight age-related cognitive decline, and this has been thought to be due to their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. A new study shows there may be an additional reason why polyphenols benefit the aging brain.

The association between obesity and reduced cognitive function appears to only occur, in older women at least, in those whose excess weight is carried on their hips, not their waist.

A very large study of older women has found that although there was a small downward trend in cognitive function (as measured by the MMSE) with increasing obesity, this trend was almost entirely driven by those with a waist-hip ratio below 0.78 — that is, for women who carry excess weight around

Although roundworm research suggesting different effects at different ages is concerned with genetic manipulation, we may speculate that restricting your food intake is a bad idea for young adults but good for the old, while reducing sugar may be better for the young than it is for the old.

Studies on the roundworm C. elegans have revealed that the molecules required for learning and memory are the same from C.

Another study demonstrating the benefits of sleep for learning motor skills (in this case, a popular video game called "Guitar Hero III".

A number of studies have shown the benefits of sleep for consolidating motor learning. A new study extends this research to a more complex motor task: "Guitar Hero III", a popular video game.

  • Several recent studies and reviews suggest that the benefits of caffeine for age-related cognitive impairment and dementia are limited. It may be that the association only exists for women.

A special supplement in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease focuses on the effects of caffeine on dementia and age-related cognitive decline. Here are the highlights:

A study of overweight children and adolescents has found that moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea was linked to both lower academic grades and behavioral concerns.

A study involving 163 overweight children and adolescents aged 10 to 17 has revealed that moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea was linked to both lower academic grades and behavioral concerns.

A recent study indicates that the alertness benefits of caffeine may simply reflect the reversal of the fatiguing effects of caffeine withdrawal.

A study involving 379 individuals who abstained from caffeine for 16 hours has revealed little variance in levels of alertness after receiving caffeine.

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea treated with CPAP therapy not only outperformed untreated OSA patients on a memory task, but they outperformed those without OSA.

A study involving 135 adults (33-65) has found that, not only did patients with obstructive sleep apnea who were being treated with CPAP therapy outperform untreated OSA patients on an overnight picture memory task, but they outperformed controls who did not have OSA.