Limiting recreational screen time to less than two hours a day, and having sufficient sleep and physical activity is associated with improved cognition, compared with not meeting any recommendations, according to an observational study of more than 4,500 US children aged 8-11 years old published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health journal. Continue reading “Limiting children’s recreational screen time to less than two hours a day linked to better cognition, study finds”
Exercise may delay cognitive decline in people with rare Alzheimer’s disease
For individuals carrying a genetic mutation that causes Alzheimer’s disease, engaging in at least 2.5 hours of physical activity per week may have beneficial effects on markers of Alzheimer’s disease brain changes and may delay cognitive decline, according to a new study available online by Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association as an article in press, corrected proof. Continue reading “Exercise may delay cognitive decline in people with rare Alzheimer’s disease”
New insight into aging
They say you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, but new research shows you can teach an old rat new sounds, even if the lesson doesn’t stick very long. Continue reading “New insight into aging”
Fish-rich diets in pregnancy may boost babies’ brain development
Women could enhance the development of their unborn child’s eyesight and brain function by regularly eating fatty fish during pregnancy. This is the suggestion from a small-scale study led by Kirsi Laitinen of the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital in Finland, in the Springer Nature-branded journal Pediatric Research. The research supports previous findings that show how important a prospective mother’s diet and lifestyle choices are for the development of her baby. Continue reading “Fish-rich diets in pregnancy may boost babies’ brain development”
Even mild physical activity immediately improves memory function
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and Japan’s University of Tsukuba found that even very light workouts can increase the connectivity between parts of the brain responsible for memory formation and storage. Continue reading “Even mild physical activity immediately improves memory function”
Does our environment affect the genes in our brains?
Is there a link between differences in IQ test performance and the activity of certain genes? Researchers from Charité — Universitätsmedizin Berlin have shown that modifications in the structure of a specific gene have a negative impact on individual test performance. This suggests that environmentally-induced epigenetic changes to our genetic material have a greater impact on intelligence than previously thought. Results from this study have been published in Translational Psychiatry. Continue reading “Does our environment affect the genes in our brains?”