Latest news with #CerebralCortex
Scoop
07-08-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Your Lifestyle Could Be Affecting Your Brain's ‘Brake System' And Be Putting You At A Higher Risk Of Dementia
Forty-five percent of dementia cases are potentially preventable, and simple lifestyle choices including exercise, diet and social connection all contribute to your risk score. But what if these risk factors were leaving chemical warning signs of decline in your brain – long before any symptoms of dementia played out? Researchers from the University of the Sunshine Coast's Thompson Institute believe they've found just that. It not only opens new avenues for early detection in dementia research – it could also help our understanding of how the brain deteriorates to increase risk of earlier dementia. The study, published today in Cerebral Cortex, used Magnetic Resonance Imaging and MR-spectroscopy to measure the brain chemical levels of 79 healthy older adults. All participants had normal memory, thinking skills and cognitive function. What varied was their modifiable-dementia risk score – calculated from health and lifestyle factors such as physical activity, sleep, social engagement, and diet. Lead author Dr Jacob Levenstein said the research team discovered specific patterns in individuals' brain chemistry relating to that risk score. 'We examined the concentration levels of Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) – which you can think of as the brain's 'brake system' he said. 'GABA is a neurochemical messenger that helps calm down brain activity and keep neural networks balanced. These results suggest 'riskier' lifestyle choices could hinder the brain's ability to properly regulate itself," he said. "We found that with higher modifiable dementia risk scores, individuals had lower GABA concentrations in movement and sensory brain regions. 'In the prefrontal cortex – a brain region that handles complex thinking and decision-making – we also found that with higher modifiable dementia risk, individuals had lower concentrations of total N-acetylaspartate (tNAA) and total choline (tCho). 'These two neurochemicals play important roles in brain tissue health and cell-to-cell communication. 'Lower levels of these neurochemicals in the brain's 'command centre' may suggest deterioration occurs long before noticeable changes in behaviour or memory.' The findings not only open the door for new early detection and intervention research, they also shed light on how the brain might deteriorate before dementia sets in. 'Crucially, these three neurochemical markers were identified in healthy older adults, meaning they could play a role in the detection of dementia years before behavioural symptoms appear, giving a head-start on prevention and mitigation' Dr Levenstein said. As co-author of the research and Lead of the Thompson Institute's Healthy Brain Ageing Program Dr Sophie Andrews points out, there is additional good news in these findings too. 'These are modifiable factors. You can make simple everyday choices that will improve your brain's health trajectory,' she said. 'We've shown that simple things like improving physical activity levels and sleep quality, looking after your mental health, and moving toward a Mediterranean-style diet, can significantly improve your outlook.'
Newsweek
26-06-2025
- Health
- Newsweek
Dog Has Accident on White Rug, What Husband Does Leaves Wife Speechless
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. A mom of two has told Newsweek about her husband's unconventional approach to dealing with the mess their dog left on a rug. Becoming a father to a young child can change a man. One study published in the scientific journal Cerebral Cortex even suggested the experience changes the shape of the male human brain. That was the conclusion reached following an experiment in which the brains of 20 expectant fathers were scanned before and after the birth of a baby, and then compared with the brains of 17 childless men. Researchers identified changes to the cortex of the fathers' brains after the births, while the childless men experienced no such shift. The scientists behind the study theorized the change was likely part of an attempt in the brain to restructure thinking to better support fatherhood. However, it could also be linked to the added stress and sleep disruption that comes with being a dad. Fatherhood certainly appeared to change the way Justin Lehman from Ohio's brain worked, if the story shared to Instagram under the handle @twomuchtosay by his wife, Chelsea Lehman, is anything to go by. It recalls a time, just after the birth of their first child, when both mom and dad were feeling the strain of being new parents. "We were living in a one-bedroom apartment while waiting for our house to be built," Chelsea told Newsweek. "We had just had our first child. He was 4 months old and never ever slept. We were so sleep-deprived, we couldn't even form sentences." It was around this time that Chelsea went back to work, with Justin picking up shifts later in the day to be with their son for the first part. "His 82-year-old grandpa would come sit at the house with our son for an hour or two in the gap of time where Justin was gone to work and I wasn't home yet," Chelsea said. That arrangement worked well for everyone except their dog, Brutus, of course. Matters came to a head on one particular day when Justin's grandpa found himself with his grandson fast asleep on him and no way of getting up to let Brutus out for a walk without disturbing the 4-month-old's much-needed rest. Brutus was getting antsy. "He needed to go outside, but the baby was asleep," Chelsea said. "So, grandpa was nap-trapped and had to watch Brutus poop right on the shaggy, white rug." Justin returned from work an hour or two later to find his son still fast asleep on grandpa and a large pile of dog mess nearby. In that kind of situation, most would have started the arduous process of removing the dog poop and cleaning the rug. Justin wasn't most people, though, as Chelsea would later discover. "He pulled out his pocketknife and cut the rug and called it a day," she said. Chelsea was left speechless when she returned home later to find a chunk of the rug missing. "My mouth dropped open because it was so unlike my husband to do something like this that I couldn't believe my eyes," she said. "Then I just laughed, probably from the lack of sleep. I kept trying to figure out how he did it without cutting the floor underneath, I still don't understand that." When Chelsea asked Justin to explain his logic, her husband told her: "I don't know why. The rug was shaggy, and we didn't like it anyways, and I was just overwhelmed with trying to get the new house done and didn't want to spend an hour trying to clean sick dog poop out of a shaggy rug." To Justin's way of thinking at the time, he was better off just trying to "cut it out and be done with it." Though it took her by surprise, the fact is Chelsea was inclined to agree with her husband's assessment of the rug. "We both hated it. It was a cheap, itchy thing we bought from Walmart just so Brutus didn't slip all over the hardwood when he walked," Chelsea said. It may have been a strange thing to witness at the time, but it is also an amusing memory and hilarious reminder of how the arrival of a new baby can do strange things to a man.
