If you're lucky enough to live a long life, you hope it will be a healthy one. Diet and exercise are important for keeping your body in good shape. But what's the secret to keeping your mind in good shape too? Researchers are studying people who have lived past 90 without any signs of dementia, and what helps preserve their mental sharpness. In 1981, researchers at the University of Southern California started the 90+ Study to look at mental acuity in the elderly. According to the study, "Evidence suggests that people who spend long stretches of their days, three hours and more, engrossed in some mental activities like cards may be at reduced risk of developing dementia." Now researchers are trying to determine whether or not these people are sharp because they are active, or active because they are sharp. Research has found little evidence that diet and exercise affect the risk of dementia in people over 90. Mental activities like crossword puzzles and reading can help delay symptoms, as can regular social interactions (which also require brain power). It appears that some mental activities are more effective than others, and that activities with a social aspect (playing cards vs. reading a book) have the biggest impact on mental acuity. My grandmother lived in a retirement community and was very active into her mid 80's. She walked regularly, played in a bowling league and met her friends to play cards once a week. A series of health problems forced her to give up those activities for a short period of time, and she never started back again. After that, her mental health quickly deteriorated. She began to isolate herself, and watching the Jerry Springer Show became one of her primary connections to the outside world. Needless to say, she started to lose touch with reality. My other grandmother just turned 90 and is one of the sharpest people I know. She goes to lunch regularly with her friends and buys and reads so many books she could start her own library. I think the combination of those two things (social and mental activities) has kept her brain functioning in peak condition. What do you think? Have you seen examples of this in your own life? Do you plan to use activities like reading and games to keep your brain sharp as you age?
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Last time I took her the DR, I was amazed to hear that her only complaint was arthritis.
She his my Queen and my idol. She knows it too. Report
Remarkable! Report
It was her decision to go into assisted living, a hard one for my sister & me to accept. Just one year later, she had a stroke from which she didn't recover. She was 100 in November of 2007 and died in March of 2008. Only a month before her death, my sister & I were searching high & low for some important papers. It was Mom who reminded us that the last time my sister had them, she also had her geneology papers. Could they be with that? They could, and they were! Mom always kept busy until her eyesight failed, either reading or playing cards. Boy, do I miss her! Report
In myself, I have noticed that if I don't do some form of physical exercise, I feel like my brain is in a fog. So, I make sure I do something, no matter how small, every day. The other day, I saw my neighbor cutting her grass and we talked for a couple of hours. My neighbor is 95 and was pushing around her mower like it was nothing. She refused my help with the grass cutting, but we weeded and trimmed her garden. She is an uber intelligent little southern belle that I just adore! We both believe that since she lives so close to the metropark and can take her daily walks it helps keep her fit and her brain active. Report
They will have fun trying to get her in a home for the elderly if the need was to arrive, lol...she will put up a fight!! She gets angry when my uncle reminds her to walk with her cane, she tends to get a little wobbly sometimes, and she says she doesn't need it, I love her dearly. Report
My mother recently died of Alzheimers, along with a couple of other slight problems. She was 89. It frightens me that I may also get dementia. I quite smoking, which my mother did until 1 year before she died, and I am trying to be as active as possible. Cardio 6 times a week, strength 3 times a week and as much walking as possible. I read a lot and have a fairly active social life. I hope it helps. My Mom was not a very social person; however she read all the time, crocheted, knit and played cards. I think activity is a key factor. I hope so. Dementia frightens me so, I was a geriatric CNA and worked alot with dementia patients. Alzheimers and Dementia are cruel diseases. Report
still hard to know if clear mind allows people to socialize and play and do puzzles, or if the activities cause the clear mind.
the games i play are on the computer. not social. hope it counts. Report
So one thing I learned is to keep your mind challenge even when she could no longer walk without assistance. She still used a walker up until she was so weak she couldn't. We are still getting puzzle books & large print Readers digest. Report
My great grandfather's take(he was 94 when he died and just starting to forget little things): the mind is like any other muscle, if you stop using it, it doesn't work anymore. Report
I hope that my love of learning remains with me to the very end. That way I will always have my nose in a book. Report
Due to these good genes and my own love of social activites and games, I believe that however long I live, I will remain just as sharp as my paternal extended family ~ Report
So - what I'm saying is that the puzzles & books have done alot for his mind, but I think he'd be even better if he hadn't been alone so long. He does have mental slip-ups, but the Adult Protective Services lady at the hospital when he fell, was amazed his mind was as sharp as it was.
Jenn Report
I am very happy that she is able to enjoy her life as 22 years ago she watched her husband deteriorate from a healthy vibrant man as he began his 9 year battle with Alzheimer's. Report
The neurosurgeon evidently told my DH that he should encourage me to go for walks and to do activities that required me to focus. So, every evening, hubby would take me by the arm and insist that I take a walk around the block with him (even though I was reluctant to do so since I felt like I closely resembled the Frankenstein monster, but that's another story).
The other thing he did was tell me that while he was at work, he expected me to spend at least an hour every day playing on the computer. At first, I wasn't even able to see a game of solitaire all the way through without getting so frustrated that I had to quit. Then it got to where it might take me the whole hour to finish a game, but by golly, I was able to lose at it with the best of them! Evenutally, I got brave and started going online to a couple of chat rooms. That made me work on regaining my ability to read, compose responses, and type.
If it had not been for that type of therapy, there is no way I would have been able to return to my office job just 6 short weeks after the rupture.
Even now, more than a decade later, when I am under a lot of stress, I start having what I call a "bad brain day" now and then. When that happens, I head for the old standby solitaire to help me regain my focus. In fact, I start out most of my days with a cup of coffee and a few games on the computer. I generally play until I can feel my brain sort of "switch on," allowing me to concentrate and focus.
I know that I definitely have to use it or lose it. Report
I think untimately, at least for neurological and psychiatric disorders, we're going to find that the solutions are biochemical or genetic, but that certainly leading an active lifestyle, as with everything else, may help delay the onset of just about everything. Report
She has been a physically active woman her entire life. I remember when she was in her 60s, she would take me and my two sisters out in the row boat (!!) and row us around the lake. She and my grandfather (RIP) were cross-country skiers in the winter. She has always been a swimmer and luckily, retirement meant being on or close to a lake.
Here's the other thing: she came from a difficult life. Having to flee Europe after World War II, she emigrated with the family first to South America and then to North America. She worked two jobs, supported the family (6 kids + my grandfather), and put herself through university. How she did it all, and remained healthy and active, is beyond me and nothing short of amazing. Report
The mind needs daily and active programming to keep sharp.
bj Report