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April 30, 2009
Researchers say reading, social activities, needlework in midlife may lower risk for memory loss in later years
WebMD (4/29, Laino) reported that, according to a study presented at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, "reading magazines, knitting and quilting, and social activities in midlife cut the risk that people would develop memory loss in their 70s or 80s by more than one-third."
Notably, "computer activities were even more protective for people in their 70s and 80s, cutting the risk of memory loss in half," researchers from the Mayo Clinic found. But, "watching more than seven hours of TV a day, on the other hand, was linked to a higher chance of memory loss."
To reach these conclusions, the team examined "197 people between the ages of 70 and 89 with mild cognitive impairment, or diagnosed memory loss, and 1,124 people in the same age group with no memory problems," asking them "a series of questions about their daily activities within the past year and in middle age, when they were between 50 to 65 years old."
Posted by admin at April 30, 2009 03:41 PM