Sangha of Auspicious Companions

Trying to Keep Your Brain young? New Study Finds These Lifestyle Changes help.

A new study has unveiled the ultimate playbook to keeping your brain sharp as you age. The POINTER study, involving over 2,100 US participants in their sixties and seventies with sedentary lifestyles, reveals that a powerful mix of diet, exercise, and brain training can help roll back the cognitive clock. Participants who embraced an intensive regimen including aerobics, a Mediterranean diet, and social activities saw strong improvements. The results are consistent with earlier findings from a small study in Finland, as well as a growing body of research over decades suggesting small interventions like exercise can reduce cognitive changes associated with aging. “This is really showing that we can change people’s trajectories over time,” observed Banner Alzheimer’s Institute’s Jessica Langbaum, who was not involved in the study. What’s next? The Alzheimer’s Association is gearing up to turn these findings into community-changing initiatives.

Be The Change

Push yourself to work towards a new exercise goal, find a hobby that pushes your brain to think in a different way, or invite a friend or elder to regularly go on a walk or do new activities together.