Written by Kathryn Savage

What does love, marriage, and belonging to a core group of friends have in common? Evidently, the health of your brain. Studies show that socializing may prevent against memory loss. Consequently, the loss of a spouse - and presumed isolation - increases risk for developing dementia. Much like muscles that need to be toned to stay fit, we're social creatures, and our brains need stimulation to stay healthy.

Recent research indicates that marriage and divorce increase Alzheimer’s risk. Scientists have found that coupled-up middle age adults, whether married or living with a partner, were 50 percent less likely to develop “dementia during their older years than people living alone.”

But before you sign up for Match.com, or call up that old flame, there is another factor to consider. The duration of your swinging singles, and why you’re single, also plays a part. Being single, without the ups and downs of divorce, doubles your risk for dementia, while ending marriage in divorce, and remaining single through your middle life, “showed three times the risk.”

Bad breakup? Prenup? Start batting for the other team? The mode of grand finale matters, too. Widowers, especially those who lost their spouse in middle age, who never remarry, have the highest chance of developing dementia and are six times more at risk for developing Alzheimer’s.

This is all fine and well until, you know, life gets in the way and then it feels like your body is acting like your mother, “just meet a nice boy, get married already.” In actuality, what this may be pointing out, is that after a traumatic event, some people don’t bounce back. These studies underscore that it is important to seek help whether that be through friends, family, therapy, or sure, Match.com, and focus on healing when we experience big life trauma. The ability to move on and continue to engage in meaningful relationships seems to be a great way to reduce your risk for certain age related diseases. 

Remarrying just isn't in the cards? Friendship is a great way to reduce memory loss. In a Harvard School of Public Health study, conducted between the years 1998 and 2004, participants, age 50 and older, who were socially active, appeared to have the lowest rate of memory decline. Better yet, the nature of the bond didn’t matter. In other words, gab with your kids, shoot the breeze with the barista, you’ll get the positive and protective effects just by getting out there and engaging other people in conversation. 

So, how are you today?  

Written by Kathryn Savage

Written by Kathryn Savage

Back in April, Blue Zones reported on research by James Smith, a health economist at the RAND Corporation, who determined education plays a key role in longevity. Dr. Smith, along with numerous researchers, has determined a few extra years of school, and continued education into adulthood, improves mental and physical health, decades later.

Now, scientists are debating if there are any risk-factors associated with all that brain power. Specifically, are seniors less likely to be diagnosed properly with early warning signs of dementia, and sent for further testing by their doctors, if they have a higher IQ? Evidently, yes.

A recent report finds that college graduates may have a bigger “cognitive reserve” and that means when being screened for dementia, they may “mask symptoms” and appear to function normally. I think of it like this - I’m bad at math, don’t ask me to file my own taxes, do long division, or help you figure out the tip. If you’re testing my math skills against an engineering professor, guess whose got a bigger brain power reserve? Exactly. Or more to the point, think about muscles, if you pump iron every morning, you’re going to out-perform a five year old when it comes to heavy lifting. The brain, like biceps, is stronger when it’s toned. And all this brain power is good, but it may prevent doctors from properly diagnosing patients with early symptoms of dementia.

The test under investigation is the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), that assesses cognitive functioning. Traditionally, if you score 24 or below, further testing is necessary to rule out, or rule in, dementia.

Based on new research, that looked at 1,141 seniors enrolled in the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer Disease Research Center and Alzheimer Disease Patient Registry,
published in the July issue of the Archives of Neurology, patients who are college educated, are encouraged to receive additional testing if their MMSE score is less than 27.

Protect those braincells...
If you’re well educated, and you’re going to receive an MMSE exam soon, request additional testing if your score is 27 or below. This could mean earlier detection of dementia and a more positive treatment course.

Written by Kathryn Savage

Want your young daughters to stay off drugs? Encourage them to eat dinner at home.
A recent study, including 800 Minnesota school kids, examined the relationship between family dinners and alcohol and substance abuse in adolescence. The study found that young girls who routinely ate dinner at home, with their family, were less likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. Young boys, did not appear to be any more resistant to drugs and alcohol based on sit-down meals with family, but other positive affects were documented.

Girls who ate dinner with their families at least five times a week during middle school, according to a report published in the Star Tribune, were “much less likely to drink, smoke or use marijuana five years later.

Why the gender gap?
While family meals are a great way to bring families together and encourage connections, healthy eating and building close bonds, there is no real understanding why when it comes to alcohol and substance use, there seems to be a gender gap. Marla Eisenberg, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health explains that family meals are very valuable because they give parents a time to “check in” with their kids, “be role models,” and see if they are adapting any negative behaviors. Another key reason to bring back the family dinner is that studies suggest kid’s connecting with adults who are supportive and care about them is more “protective” than income or religion.

Healthy Eating
A third benefit to the family meal is health. Sitting down to a dinner cooked at home is a great way for parents to eat healthy, and insure their kid’s are too.

Written by Kathryn Savage

Research suggests that if your friends are overweight, there is a greater chance that you will become overweight, too. Purely by association, research reveals that when you are surrounded a certain behavior - healthy or unhealthy - your odds of indulging that behavior increase.

The study included research by scientists at the University of Warwick, Dartmouth College, and the University of Leuven. Their study focused on data from 27,000 people and led to a term, "imitative obesity" - or "keeping up with the Joneses" on calories, as reported to BBC News.

Why the weight?
When it comes to human interaction, permission plays in important role in how we live our lives. ”Is it ok if I order another beer or will these people think I’m a lush?” “Do I look good in this dress?” “Will my wife think these concert tickets are out of our budget?” And permission plays a key role in “imitative obesity” - when the people around you are fat, it sends a signal to your subconscious that it's ok for you to be fat. So is obesity more a sociological phenomenon, rather than a physiological, an environmental or an emotional one? Well, that depends on who you’re talking to.

Interviewed in the BBC News report, Professor Andrew Oswald at the University of Warwick, who worked on the study, said: "Consumption of calories has gone up but that does not tell us why people are eating more.” He said: "Some have argued that obesity has been produced by cheaper food, but if fatness is a response to greater purchasing power, why do we routinely observe that rich people are thinner than poor people?" He encourages people to think about obesity as a sociological phenomenon instead of a physiological one.

But Dr. David Haslam, clinical director of the National Obesity Forum, also interviewed by BBC, said: "It's a bit cheeky to pin it on sociological influences - there's more to it than that." And: "If you are surrounded by people, whether that's friends or within the family home, who are overweight, you are sharing the same environment where there is likely to be an abundance of the wrong kind of foods."

People want to fit in and be liked. This research may translate to other unhealthy and healthy behaviors. All your friends smoke? There is a greater risk that you will become a smoker. Are all your friends vegetarian runners? Your chances of opting to eat less meat and run more go up, purely by association. The underlying brain signal is: if they can do it, I can do it.

The Silver Lining...
Want to adopt a new, healthy behavior? You're more likely to stick with it if you participate with a friend. Weight Watchers encourages dieters to sign up for their program with a friend or family member because members who bring a companion to the diet program have on average, more success than dieters who go it alone.

Written by Kathryn Savage

Numerous studies suggest that happiness in old age might have more to do with attitude than health. In a study examining 500 Americans between the ages of 60 and 98 who were independent and had lived with a range of age related diseases (cancer, heart disease, diabetes, mental health conditions and a host of other ills), the participants rated their happiness on average 8, on a scale of 1-10, (10 being the best). Research led by Dilip Jeste of the University of California at San Diego, discovered that optimism and “effective coping styles” were the most important factor in happiness in aging. Not perfect health and undisturbed wellness.

Similarly, in a recent Washington Post report, a number of studies suggest that aging does contribute to overall happiness. Despite America’s tendency to champion youth with it's speedy metabolism and sag-free skin, more and more studies are supporting the notion that the golden years really are golden. When you’re talking overall contentment and happiness, elderly people tend to win. The recent findings stems from a General Social Survey that interviewed 50,000 Americans year after year to see how they change with age. The results? Like a fine wine, evidently...

In an interview with The Washington Post, Tom W. Smith, of the University of Chicago and director of the General Social Survey, asserts that “people who were biologically older are happier than younger adults,..”

Is this a generational thing?
Not really. The article asserts it’s not that older adults were taught by their parents to be more grateful and appreciative. Contentment in old age appears to have less to do with lessons taught by previous generations and more to do with less societal stress that may come from getting older - less financial stress, less interpersonal stress, less job stress etc.Though young people are often in better physical health, the stress of careers, kid’s, and daily life appear to weigh on overall levels of happiness and contentment.

Written by Kathryn Savage

There has been a lot said over the last decade about the virtues of eating a Mediterranean diet. Principally, research suggests that people who live in the region have lower rates of heart disease and improved longevity.

What does a Mediterranean diet look like?
Traditionally, Greek food relies heavily on fresh vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, and whole grains. Foods are cooked in olive oil, and fish are favored on a daily basis over meat and poultry. Yogurt and cheese are sparse parts of the diet, used to flavor dips, and salads. Alcohol intakes is moderate and usually wine and ouzo, a anise flavored liqueur, the Greek national spirit, is favored over beer and other liquors.

Many studies, some involving tens of thousands of Greeks, between the ages 20 and 90, have determined that a Mediterranean diet is associated with improved cardiovascular health and lower rates of cancer. A Swedish study, from 2003, found that a Mediterranean diet can help control the inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis. Though unsure exactly why a diet high in fruits and vegetables, whole grains and olive oil would benefit arthritis sufferers, researchers think it may have to do with Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish and olive oil. Omega-3 fatty acids are "healthy" fat acids that may reduce inflammation. Also, fruits and vegetables contain a variety of nutrients and antioxidants that may also control inflammation and reduce damage to cells.  

Is a Mediterranean diet all about the food?
No medical expert would argue that eating fresh vegetables, whole grains, and a diet low in saturated fats is doing your body harm, but there may be an additional benefit to the Mediterranean way of eating, often overlooked by science. Culturally, meals are a time of languid celebration with family and friends. Traditional Greek meals are served late in the day, and can stretch on for hours. Men and women, especially from the Greek island of Crete, live to record ages, past one hundred.

What are these centenarians doing that we're not?
While researchers have focused on the nutrient benefit that comes from Mediterranean dining, Blue Zones takes a more holistic approach to health. A relaxed island lifestyle, social gatherings between friends, these events also contribute to longevity. It would seem there is more than a healthy diet at work when we talk about Mediterranean eating. Socializing and spending time with family and friends may also reduce inflammation and contribute to a long, healthy life, by reducing stress and fostering connections. And this is absolutely an ingredient you will find in a traditional Mediterranean diet.

Written by Kathryn Savage

We know that diet and exercise play a vital role in living a long, healthy life, and scientists are always coming up with new information that helps explain why this is.

A recent study, (July, 2007), published in the journal Science, reveals that even if we start later in life, healthy lifestyle habits, (eating lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and a diet low in saturated fat, along with exercise), has a profoundly balancing effect on our hormones. This may extend more than our ability to rock those skinny jeans, it also extends the health of our brains.

Quoted in a CBS News report, researcher Morris White, PhD, who works at the Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, explains that adopting healthy habits "...has less to do with how we look, and more to do with a healthy brain, especially in old age.”

Researcher Morris White, PhD and others, focused their attention on the Irs2 gene in mice. This gene is responsible for creating a protein that helps cells absorb insulin, a hormone that monitors blood sugar levels. What the scientists found in mice, is a link between an inactive Irs2 gene and insulin insensitivity. The mice with insulin insensitivity gained weight and became inactive. Insulin resistance, or insensitivity in people often leads to metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. According to a report released by the Mayo Clinic, diabetes increases your risk for Alzheimer's.

A healthy diet and exercise naturally balances blood sugar and keeps hormones in line. This isn’t about playing with genes, and getting all mad-scientist on some mice, our altering our brain chemistry to promote longevity through pills and potions. It’s more about promoting tried and true habits, and encouraging the body to take care of itself naturally. Daily exercise, calorie restriction, and maintaining a healthy weight all contribute to insulin sensitivity, reducing your risk for diabetes and possibly Alzheimer's.

Need tips on where to begin living a healthier lifestyle? There are a ton of great tips on this website, also visit Spark People for fun exercise and healthy eating suggestions. And don’t forget to check with your doctor before starting a new fitness routine.

Written by Kathryn Savage

Feeling hungry is not fun or pleasurable, (if you’re me), but it might make you happier.
When our bodies send out hunger signals, levels of a ghrelin, an appetite stimulating hormone, increase. According to a recent study, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, ghrelin’s staring roll may not be letting you know it’s time for a snack, but fighting stress.

The study
Using mice, researchers played with ghrelin levels by restricting calories and giving injections of the hormone that overtime made the mice numb to ghrelin’s appetite-rendering affects.

How did the mice feel?
Appetite aside, the dominating mood of the study was downright depressing! Mice with low levels of ghrelin activity were suicidal, (if pushed into deep water they didn’t try to swim), scared, (when they were put in a maze they hung by the entryway), and lonely, (they didn’t play with other mice).

Those mice could use a pick me up...
Interestingly, mice who showed symptoms of ghrelin-induced depression responded very well, (they perked right up), when they received anti-depressant medication.

Eggs, toast, and a side of ghrelin please...
Mice with high ghrelin levels swam like champs and took to the maze, searching eagerly for an exit. They socialized and were not afraid to explore new social environments.

Also...
Sleep studies have found that ghrelin levels increase between midnight and dawn in thin people. This may be caused by a flaw in the circadian system of obese individuals. A different sleep study, led by professor Cappuccio of the University of Warwick, found not getting enough rest may lead to obesity by increasing appetite (brought on by hormonal changes), during the day. While lack of ghrelin may cause depression, lack of sleep pumps more ghrelin into our systems which equals, “I’m hungry.” Constantly feeling hungry may also mean your body is creating less leptin, a hormone that plays a key role in regulating energy intake and energy expenditure, including appetite and metabolism.

The lesson here? It’s all about balance. Get a good nights rest and eat healthy to keep hormones, hunger, and mood swings in check.