Latest news with #cognitiveHealth
News.com.au
19 hours ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Super common habit is keeping your brain awake while you sleep
Late-night scrolling isn't the only thing sabotaging your slumber. New research suggests a common daily habit may send your brain into overdrive while you sleep — even if you do it hours before bedtime. Scientists warn the disruption could interfere with the brain's overnight recovery processes, potentially taking a toll on your cognitive health. In the study, Canadian researchers had 40 healthy adults spend two non-consecutive nights in a sleep lab. On one night, participants consumed 200 milligrams of caffeine — the equivalent of about two cups of coffee — a few hours before bed. On the other, they were given a placebo. While most people know caffeine can make it harder to fall asleep, researchers used EEG scans to track brain activity after participants dozed off and found it kept their brains in a heightened state of alertness long after they shut their eyes. They found, for the first time, that the stimulant pushed the brain into a state of 'criticality', making it more awake, alert and reactive than it should be while snoozing. 'While this is useful during the day for concentration, this state could interfere with rest at night: the brain would neither relax nor recover properly,' said Dr Julie Carrier, a psychology professor at the University of Montreal and co-author of the study. The team used artificial intelligence to detect subtle changes in neuronal activity and found caffeine increased the complexity of brain signals, preventing the brain from fully powering down during sleep. The effect was especially strong during non-REM sleep — the deep stage critical for memory and cognitive recovery. Researchers also observed changes in brain wave patterns. Slow waves linked to deep, restorative rest were reduced, while faster waves associated with wakefulness and mental activity increased. 'These changes suggest that even during sleep, the brain remains in a more activated, less restorative state under the influence of caffeine,' said Dr Karim Jerbi, a psychology professor at the University of Montreal and researcher at the Mila Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, who co-authored the study. 'This change in the brain's rhythmical activity may help explain why caffeine affects the efficiency with which the brain recovers during the night, with potential consequences for memory processing,' he added. Notably, the stimulant's effects were far more pronounced in participants aged 20 to 27 compared to those aged 41 to 58 — especially during REM sleep, the dreaming phase tied to emotional and cognitive processing. Researchers believe younger adults responded more strongly due to having more adenosine receptors. These molecules gradually accumulate in the brain throughout the day, triggering fatigue. 'Adenosine receptors naturally decrease with age, reducing caffeine's ability to block them and improve brain complexity, which may partly explain the reduced effect of caffeine observed in middle-aged participants,' Dr Carrier said. The findings suggest younger brains may be especially vulnerable to caffeine's hidden impact on rest. Caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive drug in the world, commonly found in products such as coffee, tea, chocolate, sodas and energy drinks. Three in four Australians (75 per cent) enjoy at least one cup of coffee per day, and of those, 28 per cent have three or more cups per day, according to McCrindle. While the Mayo Clinic says up to 400 milligrams of caffeine per day is generally safe for healthy adults, the study suggests it could still be interfering with sleep quality — even hours after your last sip. The scientists are calling for further research exploring how these night-time brain changes affect day-to-day functioning and cognitive health. This, they said, could one day shape personalised caffeine recommendations.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Drugs used to relieve allergies may harm our brains in the long run
Over-the-counter antihistamines, commonly used for allergies, colds, and sleep, may increase the risk of dementia, according to recent studies. First-generation antihistamines, like Benadryl, more easily cross the blood-brain barrier and impact acetylcholine, a key brain chemical for memory, posing a higher risk compared to second-generation options. A 2023 study in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease linked frequent use of first-generation antihistamines to an increased risk of dementia in older adults. Dr. Pamela Tambini advises caution with over-the-counter antihistamines, noting they can impair thinking and potentially lead to long-term cognitive issues, especially in older adults. Doctors recommend exploring newer antihistamine options like Claritin and consulting with a healthcare provider to determine the safest and most effective treatment.
BBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
How gardening can help you live better for longer
Research shows gardening preserves cognitive function, helping you live well for longer. Now, dementia patients are reaping the benefits with "care farms" prescriptions. Marianne Rogstad, a retired grandmother from Norway, is a lifelong learner. She worked as a hotel clerk in Switzerland for five decades, where she spent her days immersed in new languages and cultures. But when Rogstad returned to Norway, she was diagnosed with dementia. She soon became isolated and lost those sources of stimulation. That was until she joined Impulssenter – a small "care farm" outside of Oslo. The care farm borrows its name from the way it serves people's impulses to work and connect with others, says Henreitte Bringsjord, whose parents founded the farm. "My mum and dad loved farm work, and they thought about how hard it is for people with dementia to stop working and lose their social life. So, they wanted to help people with dementia become a part of life again," says Bringsjord, who now co-manages the farm. In 2015, Norway became one of the first countries to create a national dementia care plan, which includes government-offered daycare services such as Inn på tunet – translated as "into the yard" – or care farms. Now, as researchers recognise the vast cognitive benefits of working on the land, more communities are integrating gardening into healthcare – treating all kinds of health needs through socially-prescribed activities in nature, or green prescriptions. "Nature prescriptions can increase physical activity and social connection while reducing stress, which have multiple positive knock-on effects for blood pressure, blood sugar control and healthy weight, reducing the risk of diseases that can lead to dementia," says Melissa Lem, a family physician based in Vancouver and researcher at the University of British Columbia, Canada – where she examines the opportunities and barriers around nature-based prescriptions. "We all know that more physical activity improves mental and physical health, but gardening supercharges those benefits," she says. New data sheds light on the advantages of spending time gardening. In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers from the University of Edinburgh investigated if there might be a link between gardening and changes in intelligence our lifetimes. The study compared the intelligence test scores of participants at age 11 and age 79. The results showed those who spent time gardening showed greater lifetime improvement in their cognitive ability than those who never or rarely did. "Engaging in gardening projects, learning about plants and general garden upkeep involves complex cognitive processes such as memory and executive function," said Janie Corley, the study's lead researcher, in a press release. Corley says some of those benefits may come from the "use it or lose it" cognitive framework, a theory that suggests the strength of our mental abilities in older adulthood depend on how frequently we use them. When we neglect to perform tasks that stimulate certain parts of our brain, those parts of our brain begin to lose their functionality, but regularly engaging in these activities – such as problem solving, learning a new skill or being creative – in older adulthood can have the opposite effect. One 2002 study of more than 800 nuns in the United States found that frequently participating in cognitively stimulating activities reduced their risk of Alzheimer's disease. A more recent study of older adults in Japan found participation in meaningful activities could protect against declines in memory function. Meanwhile, other research has found that people who received an intervention of cognitively stimulating activities, typically in a social setting, saw improvements in cognition, mood, communication and social interaction. And gardening appears to have specific cognitive benefits. For one thing, gardeners seem to experience gains in the nerve levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that plays an important role in the growth and survival of neurons. They also receive boosts to their vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a protein associated with improving cognitive functioning. One 2006 study from the University of New South Wales, which followed Australian men and women throughout their sixties, found that those who gardened on a daily basis had a 36% lower risk of developing dementia than those who didn't. Gardening has also been shown to improve attention, lessen stress, reduce falls and lower reliance on medications. Some of these cognitive benefits may come from simply being in nature. Roger Ulrich, a world expert in designing health systems and a professor of architecture at Chalmers University in Sweden, was among the first to connect nature exposure to stress reduction. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, he conducted a series of landmark studies demonstrating how simply looking at trees and other plants – even through a window – can reduce pain, boost positive emotions and strengthen concentration. Ulrich suggested that these responses were driven by evolution. Since the ability to recover from a stressful situation was favourable for survival, the tendency to recover from stress in natural settings was genetically favourable, passed down through generations, and could explain why even just small doses of nature can improve wellbeing among modern humans. More like this:• Quick home health tests: Check your reaction times• Meadowscaping: The people turning their lawns into meadows• Sit-to-stand: The simple test that reveals how well you're ageing Some data seems to support the theory that we evolved to recover and heal more effectively when surrounded by nature. Lem similarly suggests some of these benefits come from our evolution – how our brains are drawn to settings with high biodiversity because they're optimal for survival. "The effects of nature are so powerful that breaking it down into its components – whether it's looking at images of nature, listening to the sounds of nature, or smelling nature – can also significantly improve our health," says Lem, who recently piloted a first-of-its-kind nature prescription programme with an art institution in Canada. In addition to stress reduction, Lem suggests that being immersed in nature might help to improve focus. According to Attention Restoration Theory, our brains have a finite capacity for directed attention in busy urban settings, and nature helps to counteract this, she explains. Lem suggests that the health benefits of gardening may also come from the way it lends itself to other health-promoting behaviours, like physical activity. She points to two studies of US adults – one that found those who gardened for more than one hour per week had a 66% lower risk of cardiac arrest, and another that found gardening was a "strong and independent predictor of positive bone density". Gardening can help people to develop greater hand dexterity, muscle mass and aerobic endurance, as well as promoting increased mobility. Still, for people who already have dementia, research suggests these benefits hold extra value, improving mood, behaviour, ability to communicate and function more than other activities. Now dedicated care farms serving people with dementia are cropping up around Europe, and in the UK. Bringsjord believes that gardening at care farms can provide a sense of agency and independence. "People love it because they can see the results of their work," she says, adding that since gardening and farm work lends itself to group observation, people who struggle with memory loss may have an easier time following along. "If they forget how to do something but then see what the other workers are doing, they remember how to do it themselves." And, even with all of the demonstrated cognitive benefits of gardening and being outdoors, Bringsjord doesn't overlook the importance of simply creating a positive environment – filled with both people and plants – for people like Rogstad. "They could go home and be really happy, and then their spouse could ask 'What did you do today?', and they could have no idea except for the fact that they had a good day," says Bringsjord. That's true for Rogstad, who now spends three days per week at the care farm – planting vegetables, feeding cows and tending to chickens – and appreciates the simplicity of the work. "It's nice to be out here in nature. It's much better than sitting at home." -- For trusted insights into better health and wellbeing rooted in science, sign up to the Health Fix newsletter, while The Essential List delivers a handpicked selection of features and insights. For more science, technology, environment and health stories from the BBC, follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Biden's shadow handlers who allegedly ran the White House revealed
A team of Biden administration insiders known as the 'politburo' were the 'ultimate decision-makers' running America as the president's cognitive health declined, according to a new tell-all book. A trio of senior political veterans who had known President Joe Biden for decades worked closely with his wife, Dr Jill Biden, and occasionally his troubled son, Hunter, to run the show, according to Jake Tapper's book, Original Sin. 'Five people were running the country, and Joe Biden was at best a senior member of the board,' one source told the authors, Tapper and Alex Thompson. 'In practice, Bruce Reed was the real domestic policy adviser, Mike Donilon was the actual political director, Steve Ricchetti controlled Legislative Affairs, and Klain controlled a bit of everything.' The book states that this group could, and would, make decisions without consulting department heads, keeping Biden at an arms length from his own cabinet members and even some of his political aides. One anonymous insider told the authors: 'I've never seen a situation like this before, with so few people having so much power. They would make huge economic decisions without calling [Treasury] Secretary Yellen.' The phrase 'politburo' is generally reserved for the upper echelon of power within a communist state. Donilon had served as a senior advisor to Biden from the beginning of his presidency, but had been a close confidante of Biden's since at least the 1980s. He was described as a 'true believer' in Biden, and enjoyed mutual trust with the president. 'The president valued Mike Donilon's advice so much that aides would later joke that if he wanted, he could get Biden to start a war,' Thompson and Tapper wrote. Klain (pictured with Biden) had also known Biden since the 1980s and was influential over policy decisions and key messaging. According to the book, Biden's aides had heard him boast of Klain over the years. He would reportedly say: 'Only one person here is smarter than me, and it's Ron.' The book claims: 'Biden showed a particular deference to Klain even though his chief of staff was often more progressive. Biden had deep respect for Klain's intellect.' And Ricchetti (pictured) was a counselor to Biden throughout the presidency, also working as chief of staff during his vice presidency under Barack Obama. Obama had, according to the book, expressed concerns about the 'hangers-on' within Biden's circle. According to the book, both Jill and Hunter Biden were prominent and permanent fixtures within Biden's circle of trust. This is despite aides and insiders partially blaming Hunter for the president's rapid deterioration. 'To understand Joe Biden's deterioration, top aides told us, one has to know Hunter's struggles,' the book stated. While promoting his book, Tapper was asked about Hunter's role in the administration and influence over his father. Fueled by information garnered through interviews with more than 200 people for the book, Tapper answered: 'I think Hunter was driving the decision-making for the family in a way that people - he was almost like a chief of staff of the family. 'It's bizarre because I think he is provably demonstrably unethical, sleazy, and prone to horrible decisions,' Tapper - whose book is called Original Sin - added. 'After his brother died, he cheated on his wife with his brother's widow and then got her addicted to crack. I don't have a lot of personal regard for him, and just based on having nothing to do with,' he added later on. 'I barely have ever met him. I've met him like once or twice.'
Fox News
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
From Washington: How Can Democrats Move Past President Biden's Term?
Former President Biden's age and cognitive health were back in the spotlight this week after announcing he's been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. The revelations have forced Democrats to answer how much they knew about the former President's decline. And now, how can the party reach voters who are disillusioned with their elected officials? Democratic strategist and former special assistant to President Biden Meghan Hays emphasizes the need for Democrats to adapt their messaging strategy in an ever-evolving media landscape. Then, Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) discusses President Trump's plans for a Golden Dome missile defense system, and lays out her efforts to fight electric vehicle mandates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
