In an article published in Medpage Today, they discuss the differences between brain age and chronological age. We have all heard about doing crossword puzzles and sudoku assists in maintaining a younger mind, but is it true? According to a recent study, two independent data sets showed that cognitive age, assessed by a novel tool as a “cognitive clock,” predicted adverse health outcomes better than chronological age.

The cognitive clock provides a specific estimate of cognitive age and can help detect who’s at highest risk of developing cognitive impairment in the coming years [reported Patricia Boyle, PhD, of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.] “For some people, cognition remains fairly stable as they age” she said, “but for others, cognition declines slowly over time, and still others show steep declines.”

“It is very difficult to develop a test or biomarker that accurately predicts health outcomes on an individual level” she said. “This has been a longstanding challenge in aging research. However we are hoping that with additional research and validation, we may be able to extend the approach applied here to clinical settings.”

– Cognitive Clock Predicts Brain Health by Judy George

Wouldn’t it be a wonderful thing to have some control are at a minimum, some ability to prepare for the future? A lot of people will say no, they don’t want to know what is going to happen to them 5 or 10 years from now. How about you?

Stay well, stay informed, and stay tuned!