Why To Exercise Today: To Promote Cognitive Health (It's Official)

The venerable Institute of Medicine came out with a report this week on cognitive aging (yes, that means you...) and a few things that can help avert the inevitable. The panel's No. 1 recommendation? "Be physically active." Enough said.

To be clear, "cognitive aging is not a disease," the report notes. "Instead, it is a process that occurs in every individual, beginning at birth and continuing throughout the life span."

That process impacts the brain like no other body part, the authors say. And while the extent and quality of cognitive aging (read: decline) varies greatly, many older men and women will experience problems related to the speed at which they process information, the ability to problem-solve and make decisions and, of course, memory. (Lost keys, anyone?)

Putting a little silver lining on things, the IOM news release quotes the chairman of the committee, Dan G. Blazer, the J.P. Gibbons Professor of Psychiatry Emeritus at Duke University Medical Center, saying that "...wisdom and knowledge can increase with age, while memory and attention can decline.”

So what should we do about our aging brains? The report is clear:

· Be physically active.

· Reduce and manage cardiovascular disease risk factors, including high blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking.

· Regularly discuss and review health conditions and medications that might influence cognitive health with a health care professional. A number of medications can have a negative effect — temporary or long term --on cognitive function when used alone or in combination with other medication.

The committee also identifies additional actions for which there is some scientific evidence to suggest positive effects on cognitive health:

· Be socially and intellectually active, and continually seek opportunities to learn.

· Get adequate sleep and seek professional treatment for sleep disorders, if needed.

· Take steps to avoid a sudden acute decline in cognitive function, known as delirium, associated with medications or hospitalizations.

· Carefully evaluate products advertised to consumers to improve cognitive health, such as medications, nutritional supplements, and cognitive training.

Here's more from the news release:

There has been considerable interest over the past several years in whether cognitive stimulation — either through formal training or everyday activities, such as completing crossword puzzles, participating in a book club, playing card games, or learning to play a musical instrument — can assist in the maintenance or even enhancement of cognitive function. The scientific literature on cognitive stimulation and cognitive training has shown that older adults can improve on trained abilities, albeit often at a slower pace than younger adults, and that improvements on the tasks can be maintained over time.

However, studies examining whether cognitive stimulation and training could transfer to real-world activities and tasks have had mixed results. For example, can a computer-based memory training program help people better remember their shopping list, medical and other appointments, and the names and faces of new acquaintances? Claims regarding the effectiveness of cognitive aging related products require careful evaluation by consumers and in regulatory review, the committee said.

Despite widespread publicity about the benefits of vitamins and supplements for brain health and the large expenditures made on these products for a wide variety of reasons, the evidence for supplements enhancing cognition or preventing decline is limited, and the medical literature does not convincingly support any vitamin supplement intervention to prevent cognitive decline, the report says.

The report emphasizes that cognitive aging has significant impacts and widespread consequences on society, including financial losses. Older adults lose an estimated $2.9 billion a year, directly and indirectly, to financial fraud. To provide necessary assistance and support to older adults, the committee called for the development of cognitive aging information resources and tools that can help individuals and families. Programs and services used by older adults, including those in financial institutions and departments of motor vehicles, should be improved to help them avoid exploitation, optimize independence, and make sound decisions. For example, the financial services industries and relevant state and federal agencies should implement systems approaches, training, and laws and regulations to help verify that financial transactions are not fraudulent or the result of diminished decision-making capacity or undue influence.

“We are only really beginning to understand how the brain changes with age,” said Victor Dzau, president of the Institute of Medicine. “As the population of older Americans grows, so will the effects of cognitive aging on society. By calling attention to this issue, we can learn more about the risk and protective factors and needed research so older adults can better maintain their cognitive health to the fullest extent possible.”