Negative Thoughts And Alzheimer ’s Risk

People who regard the prospect of aging negatively are more likely to develop brain changes linked toAlzheimer’s disease than those who have a more positive outlook. On the plus side, changing those downbeat views may help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s. The findings that views of aging can influence Alzheimer’s come from a Yale study that looked at healthy individuals enrolled in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. The researchers elicited the participants’ views on aging and followed up years later with MRIs - and in some cases brain autopsies - to see if a person’s outlook on aging correlated with brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s. The MRIs showed a greater decline in the volume of the hippocampus, the brain area that is key to memory, among people whose views of aging were negative than among others in the study. The brain autopsies showed a significantly greater number of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles - both brain changes indicating Alzheimer’s - in participants with negative views of aging. In some cases these views were expressed 28years before the plaques and tangles were seen. Study leader Becca Levy, Ph.D., associate professor of public health and psychology, suggested that stress generated by negative views on aging might be responsible for the brain changes. Replacing negative beliefs with positive ones might help head off the impact of the pessimistic views, Dr. Levy said. My Take?This is...
Source: Dr. Weil's Daily Health Tips - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Science and Supplement News alzheimer's alzheimer's prevention negative thoughts Source Type: blogs