Feature Channels: Aging

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University of Virginia Darden School of Business research shows new, more effective ways to plan for retirement.

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Older adults can improve their decision making and working memory simply by putting on a happy face, a new study suggests.

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In a study published in the January 18 issue of Cell, researchers from the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a new method to visualize aging and tumor growth in mice using a gene closely linked to these processes.

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Older adults who have suffered from aphasia for a long time can nevertheless improve their language function and maintain these improvements in the long term, according to a study by Dr. Ana Inés Ansaldo, PhD, a researcher at the Research Centre of the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (University Geriatrics Institute of Montreal) and a professor in the School of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology at the Faculty of Medicine of Université de Montréal. The study was published in Brain and Language.

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Meika Loe, Associate professor of Sociology at Colgate University is the author of Aging our Way, Lessons for Living From 85 and Beyond. The book deals with many factors about aging, including independence and dependance. She is an expert source on anything aging. She is used to talking on the radio or TV as well as via e-mail.

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People taking the blood pressure drugs called beta blockers may be less likely to have changes in the brain that can be signs of Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia, according to a study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 65th Annual Meeting in San Diego, March 16 to 23, 2013.

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A new study finds that certain changes in blood vessels in the eye’s retina can be an early warning that a person is at increased risk for glaucoma, an eye disease that slowly robs people of their peripheral vision. Using diagnostic photos and other data from the Australian Blue Mountains Eye Study, the researchers showed that patients who had abnormally narrow retinal arteries when the study began were also those who were most likely to have glaucoma at its 10-year end point. If confirmed by future research, this finding could give ophthalmologists a new way to identify and treat those who are most vulnerable to vision loss from glaucoma. The study was recently published online by Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

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Promising target for aging disorders and cancer.

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The 60+ age group globally is expected to climb from 605 million in the year 2000 to around 2 billion people by the year 2050. In addition, the number of people worldwide age 80+ is expected to quadruple to almost 400 million (Leatherhead Food Research, 2012). These older consumers want to live active, healthy lives as they age. As they are becoming increasingly aware of food’s impact on health and wellness, more will begin to look at food to solve or prevent health issues.

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A new study published in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science found that between 40 to 50 percent of older adults with visually impairing eye disease limit their activities due to a fear of falling. Vision scientists warn that this protective strategy puts seniors at risk for social isolation and disability.

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As we get older, the trillions of cells in our body do too. And like us, they become less resilient and able to weather the stress of everyday life. Our skin especially tells the tale of what’s happening throughout our bodies. Now, scientists are learning that aging cells bear only part of the blame for this downward spiral.

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Aging has been viewed as a period of progressive decline in physical, cognitive and psychosocial functioning, and is viewed by many as the “number one public health problem” facing Americans today. This negative view of aging contrasts with results of a comprehensive study of 1,006 older adults in San Diego by researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Stanford University.

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To survey previously uncharted territory, a team of researchers at UW-Madison created an “atlas” that maps more than 1,500 unique landmarks within mitochondria that could provide clues to the metabolic connections between caloric restriction and aging.

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For the first time, scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have defined key events that take place early in the process of cellular aging. Together the discoveries, made through a series of experiments in yeast, bring unprecedented clarity to the complex cascade of events that comprise the aging process and pave the way to understanding how genetics and environmental factors like diet interact to influence lifespan, aging and age-related diseases such as cancer and neurodegenerative disorders.

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In a new study, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, describe markers and a model that quantify how aging occurs at the level of genes and molecules, providing not just a more precise way to determine how old someone is, but also perhaps anticipate or treat ailments and diseases that come with the passage of time.

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Many of dementia’s behavioral symptoms can be managed well without medications.

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Scientific studies have suggested that a wandering mind indicates unhappiness, whereas a mind that is present in the moment indicates well-being. Now, a preliminary UCSF study suggests a possible link between mind wandering and aging, by looking at a biological measure of longevity.

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For baby boomers, the peak interest in health issues comes at about age 51, with a second peak coming near age 65, according to a new study.

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Many baby boomers want to improve the way people view aging, but an Oregon State University researcher has found they often reinforce negative stereotypes of old age when interacting with their own parents, coloring the way those seniors experience their twilight years.

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Common medication to treat insomnia, anxiety, itching or allergies can have a negative impact on memory or concentration in the elderly, according to Dr. Cara Tannenbaum, Research Chair at the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (IUGM, Montreal Geriatric University Institute) and Associate Professor of Medicine and Pharmacy at the University of Montreal (UdeM).

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A small study of older and younger men conducted at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University suggests that a build-up of a fat molecule known as ceramide might play a leading role in muscle deterioration in older adults.

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New research to be presented at the American Public Health Association's 140th Annual Meeting

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Cognitive functions improve significantly after four months of high-intensity interval training program in middle-aged people with increased cardiovascular risk.

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Computer simulations provide new mathematical support for the “grandmother hypothesis” – a famous theory that humans evolved longer adult lifespans than apes because grandmothers helped feed their grandchildren.

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A link has been discovered between Alzheimer’s disease and the activity level of protein eIF2alpha. Prof. Kobi Rosenblum, U of Haifa: "Altering the performance of this protein via drug via drug therapy could constitute a treatment for Alzheimer’s."

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A study by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers finds that a starvation hormone markedly extends life span in mice without the need for calorie restriction.

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Cigarette smoking is a well-known risk factor for a wide-range of diseases. Now, scientists have evidence that smoking may also increase the risk of age-related cataract, the leading cause of blindness and vision loss in the world.

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Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have shown for the first time in an animal model that vitamin C actively protects against osteoporosis, a disease affecting large numbers of elderly women and men in which bones become brittle and can fracture. The findings are published in the October 8 online edition of PLoS ONE.

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Keeping the lungs healthy could be an important way to retain thinking functions that relate to problem-solving and processing speed in one’s later years, new research suggests.

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A new study has outlined for the first time a biological mechanism by which zinc deficiency can develop with age, leading to a decline of the immune system and increased inflammation associated with many health problems, including cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease and diabetes.

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Researchers have found that when given resveratrol, a compound found in red wine, bees consume less food.

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Being physically fit during your 30s, 40s, and 50s not only helps extend lifespan, but it also increases the chances of aging healthily, free from chronic illness, investigators at UT Southwestern Medical Center and The Cooper Institute have found.

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A new made-in-the-lab material designed to rejuvenate the human voice, restoring the flexibility that vocal cords lose with age and disease, is emerging from a collaboration between scientists and physicians, a scientist heading the development team said here today as he delivered the Kavli Foundation Innovations in Chemistry lecture at the 244th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.

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Dermatologists are using injectable hyaluronic acid fillers to not only add volume to the lips, but also to reduce the fine lines and common signs of aging around the mouth, enhancing the natural smile. (Information presented at AAD's Summer Academy Meeting)

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Getting better results from your anti-aging products can be as easy as following simple tips from dermatologists.

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Researchers at Oregon State University have discovered, for the first time in any animal species, a type of “selfish” mitochondrial DNA that is actually hurting the organism and lessening its chance to survive – and bears a strong similarity to some damage done to human cells as they age. It could provide an important new model to study human aging.

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Despite advances in health care and increases in life expectancy overall, Americans with less than a high school education have life expectancies similar to adults in the 1950s and 1960s.

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Neuroscientists are finding that, as we get older, our aging brains are proving surprisingly malleable, and in ways not previously anticipated. But there are limitations.

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Why do we age, and what makes some of us live longer than others? For decades, researchers have been trying to answer these questions by elucidating the molecular causes of aging.

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Hundreds of mutations exist in leukemia cells at the time of diagnosis, but nearly all occur randomly as a part of normal aging and are not related to cancer, new research shows.

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Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine (http://www.einstein.yu.edu/) of Yeshiva University have uncovered one of the mechanisms by which aging may compromise the ability of the immune system to fight infections and respond to vaccines. The study, conducted in aging mice, shows that administering antioxidants may help reverse this loss of immune function. The findings were published online this month in the journal Cell Reports.

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By examining fruit flies at two different stages of their lives – youth and middle age -- a team of U.S. scientists has discovered important insights that explain why our ability to ward off infection declines with age. The findings are published in the July 2012 issue of the Genetics Society of America’s journal, GENETICS.

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Aging expert discusses how to talk with parents about moving into nursing home and end-of-life wishes.

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People who restrict their caloric intake in an effort to live longer have hearts that function more like those in people who are 20 years younger. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that a key measure of the heart’s ability to adapt to physical activity, stress and other factors, doesn’t decline nearly as rapidly in people who have significantly restricted their caloric intake.

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New findings from the Monell Center reveal that humans can identify the age of other humans based on differences in body odor.

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Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology of Yeshiva University have found that personality traits like being extroverted, enjoying laughter and staying engaged may also be part of the longevity genes mix that allows some people to reach age 100 and beyond. The findings published online May 21 in the journal Aging.

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Despite a long-held scientific belief that much of the wiring of the brain is fixed by adolescence, a new study shows that changes in sensory experience can cause massive rewiring, even as one ages. These findings may open new avenues of research on brain remodeling and aging.

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Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have, for the first time, identified a single gene that simultaneously controls inflammation, accelerated aging and cancer.

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Stem cells are essential building blocks for all organisms, from plants to humans. They can divide and renew themselves throughout life, differentiating into the specialized tissues needed during development, as well as cells necessary to repair adult tissue. Therefore, they can be considered immortal, in that they recreate themselves and regenerate tissues throughout a person’s lifetime, but that doesn’t mean they don’t age. They do, gradually losing their ability to effectively maintain tissues and organs.