Tuesday, June 16th, 2009 at
2:56 pm
Possessing a greater purpose in life is associated with lower mortality rates among older adults according to a new study by researchers at Rush University Medical Center.
Patricia A. Boyle, PhD, and her colleagues from the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center, studied 1,238 community-dwelling elderly participants from two ongoing research studies, the Rush Memory and Aging Project and the Minority Aging Research Study. None had dementia. Data from baseline evaluations of purpose in life and up to five years of follow-up were used to test the hypothesis that greater purpose in life is associated with a reduced risk of mortality among community-dwelling older persons.
Purpose in life reflects the tendency to derive meaning from life’s experiences and be focused and intentional, according to Boyle.
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Friday, May 22nd, 2009 at
2:52 pm
British scientists have found a significant link between later retirement age and later onset of dementia in men.
The research is published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
This result came from an analysis of 382 men with probable Alzheimer’s by scientists from the Institute of Psychiatry and Cardiff University. Information based on education and employment was used to determine the effects of early life education, mid life employment and later life retirement on the age of onset of dementia.
A significant affect was found between later retirement age and later onset of dementia. The small sample of men make the other measures difficult to interpret, but they suggest that education or specific job type has a weaker link with dementia risk.
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Friday, May 15th, 2009 at
2:53 pm
A potential vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease also has been shown in mice to slow the weakening of muscles associated with inclusion body myositis, a disorder that affects the elderly.
The finding brings new hope for IBM patients with weakness, inflammation or atrophy of muscles in their fingers, wrists, forearms or quadriceps. There is no cure for IBM, nor is there an effective treatment, according to the National Institutes of Health.
“The immunization wasn’t a complete fix, but it significantly slowed the deterioration of motor function in our IBM mice,” said Frank LaFerla, director of UC Irvine’s Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia. “I hope our discovery leads to clinical trials and, eventually, a vaccine for people suffering from or at risk for IBM.”
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