MUST READS

A March 17, 2016 Forbes.com opinion piece by Jason Karlawish called for a public health approach to dealing with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and cognitive decline. According to Karlawish, “Alzheimer’s disease has largely been framed as a costly biomedical problem that needs an effective diagnostic test and treatment, and cognitive aging waits in the wings for the same approach, and a theranostic strategy holds promise to relieve their threats on our autonomy. Short of a cure however, we’re going to have to live with cognitive decline. We need as well to pursue a public health approach to tackle why we dread Alzheimer’s disease and how we’ll live with it with our dignity and our communities intact. The examined mind must be a mind worth living with, employing, and enjoying.” Jason Karlawish is a Professor of Medicine, Medical Ethics and Health Policy, and Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania.

A March 16, 2016 WebMD.com article reported that “New research adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that keeping your heart fit may help your mind stay sharp as well.” According to the article, “At follow-up, scientists noted that meeting more heart-healthy goals was linked to less deterioration in brain processing speed, memory and executive function. Executive function involves focusing, organization, time management and other cognitive skills.”

A March 16, 2016 Forbes.com article highlighted the potential of home-sharing to help a graying society age in place longer. According to the article, “Survey after survey shows that Americans want to remain in their own homes as they get older; it’s called aging in place. Failing that, they’d like to live in someone else’s home — just not an institutional nursing home. Turns out, you may be able to make some money from this wish by launching a home-sharing operation or just renting out part of your own home.”

SPOTLIGHT ON SEX BASED RESEARCH 

A March 16, 2016 CNN.com article highlighted new research on the different ways that men and women respond to verbal learning tests used to diagnose Alzheimer’s and other memory disorders. According to study author Erin Sundermann of Albert Einstein College of Medicine, “The female advantage in verbal memory may allow women to maintain normal cognitive function for longer as the disease progresses. And that female advantage may help to mask a true mild cognitive impairment diagnosis in women.

A March 16, 2016 Science20.com article reported that “Gender-specific differences between the levels and structures of proteins present in the white matter and the mitochondria of the brains of men and women suffering from dementia have been revealed for the first time in a study published in the open access journal Molecular Brain.”