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Gerontology

Regular exercise significantly boosts brain power in the over 50s

A combination of aerobic and resistance exercises can significantly boost the brain power of the over 50s, finds the most comprehensive review of the...

Weak grip a strong predictor of metabolic disease and disability

A simple test to determine a person's grip strength is a robust predictor of developing metabolic disorders in middle or older age, a cross-continental...

Poor smell linked to increased risk of dying

In a Swedish study of adults aged 40 to 90 years who were followed for 10 years, poor smell was linked with an increased...

Assessing effect of exercise and supplements on muscle mass and function

Physical exercise has a positive impact on muscle mass and muscle function in healthy subjects aged 60 and older but the interactive effect of...

People who care for others live longer

Older people who help and support others live longer, found a multinational study. And grandparents who care for their grandchildren on average live longer than...

Drug tx to prevent hip fractures not viable

Drug treatment to prevent hip fracture is neither viable nor cost effective, with current strategy inefficient and associated with considerable harms, an international team of researchers found.

Testosterone's role in prostate enlargement

The factors that contribute to prostate enlargement have yet to be definitively identified, but a University of California anthropological study suggests that the overabundance of testosterone may be a prime culprit.

Physical activity slashes mortality risk in elderly men

Half an hour of physical activity for six days a week linked to 40% lower risk of death in elderly men and the impact on health is as good as giving up smoking, suggests a large 12-year Norwegian study. Men who regularly engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity during their leisure time lived five years longer, on average, than those classified as sedentary.

Diet in preventing late-life muscle loss

Although some studies find diet can enhance the effects of exercise to prevent muscle loss in later life, current evidence about what works is inconsistent.

Healthy eating stalls elderly's cognitive decline

Older people who eat healthily may be less likely to experience declines in thinking and memory over time, according to an international study.

Frailty is better risk indicator than age

Frailty among older people with cardiovascular disease appears to be more predictive than age for gauging their risk of heart attack, stroke and death, according to an international study.

50-year Swedish study's clues to longevity

A 50-year Swedish study into longevity recommends that those who 'aspire to centenarianism refrain from smoking, maintain healthy cholesterol levels and confine themselves to four cups of coffee a day'.

Early imaging not linked with better outcomes

Older adults who had spine imaging within six weeks of a primary care visit for back pain had pain and disability over the following year that was no different from similar patients who did not, contradicting many guidelines.

Elderly with AF face higher risk of falling

Older adults who suffer a fall are twice as likely to have atrial fibrillation, found a Netherlands-led analysis of data on 4,800 adults over age 50 in Ireland.

Perceptual training benefits contrast sensitivity

Older adults whose vision is affected by declining contrast sensitivity can improve their ability to see with perceptual learning training, found research from University of California and Brown University.

Interventions slow cognitive decline

A comprehensive programme providing those at risk of dementia with nutritional guidance, exercise, brain training, and management of metabolic and vascular risk factors appears to slow down cognitive decline, according to a randomised controlled trial lead from the Karolinska Institute.

SuperAgers have super-different brains

The cognitively elite elderly, so-called SuperAgers, have distinctly different looking brains than those of normal older people, according to Northwestern Medicine research.

Drug combination doubles mortality risk

The combination of the commonly prescribed antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole with the diuretic spironolactone, widely used for heart failure, more than doubles the risk of death for older patients, according to a large Canadian study.

Meditation could preserve the ‘little grey cells’

Building on earlier work that suggested people who meditate have less age-related atrophy in the brain’s white matter, University of California researchers have found that meditation appeared to help preserve the brain’s grey matter, the tissue that contains neurons.

Elderly continue to enjoy sex

Older people are continuing to enjoy active sex lives well into their seventies and eighties, according to research from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

Elderly need more protein than RDA

US researchers found that a higher amount of protein intake than the recommended daily allowance (RDA) in older adults improved whole body net protein balance and muscle protein synthesis.

Elderly in care at risk of dehydration

A British study on 20,000 old and infirm people found them to be at increased risk of dehydration, leading to high sodium levels, an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality.

Add happiness for healthier bones

Older women who are satisfied with their lives may have better bone health, a 1,100-woman study from the University of Eastern Finland found.

Team finds more reliable algorithm for diagnosing Alzheimer's

An international team of researchers has spent 10 years working towards a simpler, more reliable approach to the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. Medical News...

Sleep deprivation linked to premature ageing of the brain

Researchers at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, Singapore have found that less sleep in older adults is linked to premature ageing of the brain. Science...

‘Living with multiple chronic diseases now the norm’

With nearly four in five older Americans living with multiple chronic medical conditions, a new study finds that the more ailments you have after...

Air pollution may hasten cognitive decline in elderly

The tiny particles in vehicle exhaust and other sources of air pollution may hasten cognitive decline in older adults. Reuters Health reports that scientists...

Centenarians not likely to die of chronic disease

Pneumonia and frailty are more likely to be the cause of death among people aged 100 and older, rather than chronic conditions such as...

Oxytocin found to rejuvenate old muscle and other tissue

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have discovered that the hormone oxytocin is indispensable for healthy muscle maintenance and repair, and that in...

Cynicism and distrust can ‘breed’ dementia

Older people who harbour a cynical distrust of others are about three times more likely to develop dementia than individuals who have a more...

Handshake could predict ageing process

A strong handshake can say a lot about a person. But says, a Science Daily report, Warren Sanderson, Professor of Economics with joint appointment...

New finding could slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease

An anti-depressant drug could be used to slow the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. BBC News reports that research into 23 people, and transgenic mice,...

Transfusions of young blood could reverse ageing

Researchers in the US are closing in on a therapy that could reverse harmful ageing processes in the brain, muscles, heart and other organs....

Spending time online can prevent depression in the elderly

Older Americans who regularly spent time online were about a third less likely to suffer from depression, in a study that compared them to...

Link found between problem drinking and later-life memory loss

Drinking too much can lead to memory loss in later life. The Guardian reports that scientists questioned 6,542 middle-aged Americans about their past alcohol...

Anticholinergic medications affect physical functioning in older adults

A class of medications previously linked to cognitive impairment in older adults also appears to negatively affect their physical functioning. Science Newsline reports that...

Extreme loneliness worse than obesity as health risk

Extreme loneliness on a long-term basis can be worse than obesity in terms of increasing the potentially lethal health risks that lead to premature...