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Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

nhs.uk

11–20 of 111 posts

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#11
post #6

i wish they 'd suggest "programming" instead of puzzle solving. i mean, it's a form of puzzle solving, but it s also useful in real life.

"Doesn't slow down mental decline"... They're not suggesting anything. They are summarizing the conclusion of the study which determined that intellectual engagement may not offset age related cognitive decline.

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#12
post #8

But exercise does: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20160324/Exercise-slows-do...

I got my genes sequenced recently and it turns out I have a mutant gene that predisposes me to Alzheimers - APOE e4. it's a cholesterol shuttling gene! Very important to keep low fat, it effects your entire body.

I hadn’t heard that body fat composition affected Alzheimer’s risk. Out of curiosity, do you have a reference?

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#13
post #7

But exercise does: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20160324/Exercise-slows-do...

My armchair analysis suspects that it is chemicals like cortisol will degrade the brain over time, while dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin will help preserve it. So stress and anxiety bad, exercise good.

Completely off topic, but I appreciate you properly citing your source. I hate when people make absolute claims off no factual evidence. Even just "I heard ______ " is a perfectly acceptable comment imo.

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#14
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got my genes sequenced recently and it turns out I have a mutant gene that predisposes me to Alzheimers - APOE e4. it's a cholesterol shuttling gene! Very important to keep low fat, it effects your entire body.

I hadn’t heard that body fat composition affected Alzheimer’s risk. Out of curiosity, do you have a reference?

Body fat is a risk for multiple disease. The general idea is that whenever viruses enter the adipose tissue they are hard to reach by the immune system. We dont really understand yet what causes Alzheimer but now there is suspicion of a viral link.

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#15
post #6

i wish they 'd suggest "programming" instead of puzzle solving. i mean, it's a form of puzzle solving, but it s also useful in real life.

"Doesn't slow down mental decline"... They're not suggesting anything. They are summarizing the conclusion of the study which determined that intellectual engagement may not offset age related cognitive decline.

> Did you even read the article?

Please edit such swipes or nasty tropes out of your comments here. This is in the site guidelines: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html. We're trying for a bit better than internet median in HN discussions.

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#17
post #4

This is a fascinating share, if not for the results—"None of the measures of intellectual engagement was linked to the speed of decline of people's mental abilities over time"—but for the study itself. "Many people also dropped out of the study. Only 96 of the 498 people recruited took part in the last round of testing. The researchers lost touch with 13 people, while 57 people died and 332 declined to take part." Do…

Wow,

a rate of drop-out like that would certainly make me doubtful of the results of the study. It seems reasonably likely that people dropped-out in a fashion that would be weighted in one way or another.

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#18
Another activity that I have heard as slowing down mental decline is dancing:

https://blog.frontiersin.org/2017/08/29/dancing-can-reverse-...

Regardless of this dubious study, I will continue to solve crosswords. Cryptic crossword solvers were prized in Bletchley Park, since it was seen as evidence of lateral thinking. [1] I used to look down upon quick crosswords since they were too direct, but lately I have tried to time myself solving quick crosswords, and I find that they can be challenging as well when tried in a genuine quick mode - they involve jogging the memory at a very fast rate.

[1] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/world-war-two/11151478/C...

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#19
post #8

But exercise does: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20160324/Exercise-slows-do...

I got my genes sequenced recently and it turns out I have a mutant gene that predisposes me to Alzheimers - APOE e4. it's a cholesterol shuttling gene! Very important to keep low fat, it effects your entire body.

Which service did you use for gene sequencing?

Re: Puzzle-solving 'doesn't slow down mental decline in older people'

#20

I really enjoy the write-ups that the NHS does for these news analysis pieces. Informative, well pitched voice - in my opinion. Trustworthy

I agree. The A-Z of health conditions is also excellent:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/

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