How to Maintain Peak Mental Ability as You Get Older

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Almost everyone-experiences some decline in memory and reaction time after age 40. But a rich network of neural connections-links between brain cells that allow them to communicate-can help compensate for these losses.

A rich neural network may even help keep people from being incapacitated by Alzheimer's disease.

Extensive neural connections seem to act as a kind of cognitive reserve allowing a person to function longer with the disease than someone whose mental resources were less extensive.

Good News:

Brain cells can form new connections at any age. I'm 55 years old, and I've decided to take steps now to preserve mental function later.

Develop A Consuming Passion

When your brain is involved in a wide range of activities, more neural circuits are created and maintained.

Helpful:

Cultivating an interest in something totally different from your customary pursuits. A lawyer might take up bridge... or an accountant might learn to play me clarinet.

It's also a good idea to take classes in unfamiliar subjects. Studies have shown that higher education early in life helps ensure proper brain functioning in old age. It seems likely that intellectual activity later in life builds cognitive reserves as well.

Get Regular Exercise

Every day, I walk a few miles at a moderate pace. In addition to keeping the heart and lungs healthy, exercise boosts blood flow to the brain, fueling it with oxygen and glucose.

Another excellent form of exercise is the gentle Chinese martial art tai chi.

Take Supplements-Sensibly

Cellular damage caused by free radicals renegade molecules formed in the body as a by product of normal metabolism is thought to be a major cause of age related mental decline.

To neutralize free radicals, I make sure to get enough of the antioxidant vitamins A, C and E.

I eat lots of fruits and vegetables... and take a supplement containing 10,000 international units (IU) of beta-carotene (the precursor of vitamin A)... 1,000 milligrams (mg) of vitamin C...and 400 IU of vitamin E (in the form d-alpba tocopherol, which has the highest "biopotency").

Since we tend to become deficient in zinc as we age, I also take a pill containing about 20 mg of this mineral every day. Zinc plays a key role in preserving the sense of smell.

Estrogen

The Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging found that postmenopausal women who take estrogen are less likely to suffer from dementia than other women... and that women who already have dementia show improvement when they take estrogen.

Caution:

Estrogen increases the risk for breast, uterine and ovarian cancer. Recent studies have refuted earlier findings that it protects against heart disease. Further studies are under-way to investigate estrogen's role in the prevention and treatment of dementia. Women with a family history of any of these diseases generally should not take estrogen.

In men, estrogen promotes breast enlargement-so it's not a good idea for them to take it. Researchers hope to develop a drug that will stimulate men's estrogen receptors without "feminizing" side effects.

Anti-Inflammatory Drugs

The Baltimore study also found preliminary evidence that taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprqfen might be protective against Alzheimer's.

Caution:

Since NSAIDs can cause stomach trouble, they should be taken under a doctor's supervision.

DHEA

Studies suggest that this hormone improves memory. But it increases men's risk for prostate cancer. We don't know if it poses any danger to women. More research is needed.

Prevent Strokes

A stroke occurs when a blood clot or ruptured artery cuts off blood flow to the brain. New research links stroke induced brain dam-age with Alzheimer's.

To Minimize Your Risk:

Exercise regularly, eat a healthful diet, avoid smoking and keep your blood pressure under control.

The signs of stroke include numbness on one side of the body... difficulty speaking or understanding speech... sudden headache... dizziness or loss of balance...and blurred or decreased vision.

Control Stress

Chronic psychological stress causes the body to make excess cortisol. Over time, high levels of this adrenal hormone can cause deterioration of the hippocampus, a part of the brain that plays a critical role in memory.

We can't always control events, but we can control our response to these events. One strategy I use is to reframe frustrations as challenges.

Maintain Finger Dexterity

French researchers found recently that older women who knit retain normal mental function longer than their nonknitting counterparts. I don't knit, but I always carry a crossword dice game with me. Whenever I have a few minutes to spare, I play it.

Make Practical Adaptations

Memory aids - from making lists to carrying a plamtop computer - are great for helping offset age-related memory loss. But do not become so dependent on these helpers that you allow your own natural abilities to atrophy.

Example :

If I'm carrying a list of things to do. I'll check it only after I've called up as many items as I can from my own memory.

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