Aging1
As we age, the brain shrinks,
White matter degrades,
Blood flow is reduced,
Plaques and tangles develop.
Free radicals damage increases,
as does inflammation.
So what to do?
Compensate:
Use adaptive capabilities,
Tap cognitive reserves,
Control risk factors,
(Cholesterol, blood pressure, weight)
Exercise,
Eat healthy,
Stimulate your intellect,
Be social,
And
Use it.
[1]From article title “The Changing Brain in Healthy Aging”, http://www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers/publication/part-1-basics-healthy-brain/changing-brain-healthy-aging, published Sept. 2008, updated Jan. 22, 2015
I wrote the above to summarize the article. I think this is a good to remember, but who can remember the whole article. I like the ‘free radicals’ I want to be one when I grow up. Plaques and tangles sound like something I have to avoid when I go to the garage to find something. But, when it comes to tapping my cognitive reserves, haven’t I been doing that all my life?
I did learn something html wise when I created this. I had to go to html to get the superscript for the footnote. “<” sup and /sup>” tags are your friends.