Francene - Views on news
  • BLOG
  • About
  • Contact

 Discover why your IQ increases with age.

9/1/2015

8 Comments

 
Picture
 Older people are now cleverer than ever before, but, while today’s over-50s may be the brightest in history, their health is getting worse, according to studies.

Researchers believe an increase in the use of technology, more intellectually demanding jobs and more years of education have kept older brains sharper.

Only the first listed reason for brain advancement relates to me. I use the internet. I can look up whatever I want with the touch of my finger. Fifteen years ago, I worked in catering, which didn't challenge my intellect much, and I left school at sixteen, way back in 1958.

However less physically demanding jobs and lazier lifestyles are also making our muscles wither and waistlines grow flabbier as we age.

Yep! That applies to me right now. I only eat a small amount of healthy food, yet my waistline is expanding. Why do older people develop a protruding stomach?

The Austrian-based International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis used two separate studies on Britons and Germans aged between 50 and 90. Researchers tested participants’ cognitive and perceptual functioning in 2006 and again in 2012.

They found that cognitive test scores increased significantly within the six year period for men and women of all ages.

Yay for the oldies!

The German study also assessed participants’ physical health in a questionnaire looking at bodily pain, general health perceptions, energy and vitality.

Results, published in the journal PLOS One, found physical functioning and mental health declined over the six years across all ages, although men were more adversely affected than women. The steepest decline came from men with lower levels of education between the ages of 50 and 64. Source: Daily Mail. 

My 77 yr-old husband is decrying his memory loss at the moment. His powers of recall used to be for superior to mine, but his is fading fast.

Perhaps giving my view on news daily is contributing to my grasp on current life. There has to be a bonus for writing a daily report when I'd 'druther' concentrate on my memoirs. Of course, for that, I need a good memory. But, if I don't capture events in my past now, they'll be lost forever.

Here's my earliest memory from 70 years ago:

In one very early episode, we lived beside stop four on the tram run from Adelaide to Glenelg at Forestville in South Australia. I stood on a slatted wooden seat in the back yard beside my parents saying, 'Ta I dump?' (Shall I jump?) I must have been about three. My mother told me the story several times over the years, which helped cement it in my mind. I felt proud and adventurous, knowing my jump might go wrong and I'd end up hurting myself. It's only looking back that I see what courage I showed. I didn't know that other people could do the same thing without pain. But I experienced a twinge in my hips each time. You see, I'd been born with malformed hips, a condition that the midwives didn't test back then.

 And here I am faced with a balance again: news or memoirs. Maybe I need both.

What do you do to keep your mind active?

8 Comments
Lata link
8/31/2015 07:49:28 pm

I have lately been wondering why short term memory fades first. Any info on that? On keeping the brain muscles exercised, reading helps I think as long as one has vision. Though admittedly I am unable to read as much as I once used to

Reply
Leanne link
8/31/2015 08:04:19 pm

I'd swap my increased IQ for a decreased midline if that was possible :) I have the same problem with eating like a waif and still having my waistline widening - at least my mind is improving! ~ Leanne

http://www.crestingthehill.com.au/2015/09/pinterest-tips-that-might-surprise.html#.VeV2Tvmqqko

Reply
Nick #thisyearinmusic link
9/1/2015 03:56:43 am

I was reading today that after your initial years on Earth your brain power goes down and the synapses become less and less.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2015/01/baby-brains/bhattacharjee-text

Reply
Magical Mystical Mimi link
9/1/2015 05:07:07 am

I read EVERYTHING I can get my hands on and I do brain games and watch Jeopardy, Wheel Of Fortune, and play along! I do crossword puzzles too! :) I'm 52 and my earliest memory is when I was just over a year old and my mom and my 5 siblings were flying to Germany to reunite with my dad. I remember what everyone was wearing, where we were sitting and that everyone of the kids got sick but me! :D They say the earlier your memories recall the higher your I.Q. but I don't know. I've never been tested but when I tested for kindergarten they wanted to put me in 3rd grade! Geesh, for someone so seemingly intelligent I've sure made some not so intelligent choices in my life.. Lol..

Reply
Bonnie Gean link
9/1/2015 05:19:01 am

Hi Francene,

I've had a growing waistline for years now, and I've just hit age 55. However, two years ago I went on an eating plan with Medical Weight Loss Clinic.

Believe it or not, I wasn't eating enough and this causes my body to retain what I ate and stored it as fat.

As soon as MWLC put me on a 2400 eating plan, the weight started to come off, week by week. Within 4 months, I lost 64 pounds. Eating small portions isn't always the best because when I ate like a bird, my body didn't dispose of the food as fast either.

My brain? Long term memory has been fading for some time, but I account this for aging. I don't read as many books as I used to, but I do read MANY online blog articles. I can't readily tell if I am smarter now than I was 10 years ago, but I certainly feel my age! LOL

- Bonnie

Reply
Jason Feller link
9/1/2015 08:24:38 am

Fascinating information. I wasn't fully aware of these studies or their findings. Thanks for sharing your memory at the end!

Reply
Alana link
9/1/2015 08:29:32 am

I read, I do research for my blog (not as extensive as your research, Francene!), and, best of all - I work. At work, my field continuously changes, and I must keep up. It's great mental exercise.

Reply
Barbara link
9/2/2015 02:47:32 am

We've been discussing aging as it relates to diet and muscle tone a lot around here lately because my husband is doing research for his next blog post. Exercise and specifically weight lifting is another important key to healing as we get older. (lifting my heavy iron cooking pots has even more benefits than I thought) ha ha :)
Reading, puzzles, continuing to work and just about everything to keep sharp is so important. My mom had alzheimer's and I felt like I lost her 10 years before she passed away. She missed so much.
Thanks for this post and the time you put in to research this.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Francene Stanley
    From England, I use news items in my novels which you can see below, all linked to an Amazon near you.

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015

    Categories
    news
    earth
    sea
    space
    environment
    people
    animals
    fish
    birds 

    experience 
    writing
    novels

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.