Latest

Aging

·April 27, 2025·5 min read

Midlife Reflections Lead to Greater Happiness and Fulfillment

Late midlife can be a powerful period of personal growth, marked by increasing self-transcendence through life storytelling. Researchers observed that people who actively reflect on and reinterpret their life experiences experience greater self-acceptance, well-being, and optimism.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 26, 2025·8 min read

Why Belly Fat Expands With Age, and How to Target It

New research uncovers that aging activates a new type of stem cell that rapidly produces fat cells, explaining why belly fat often expands in middle age. Scientists found that aging triggers adipocyte progenitor cells (APCs) to evolve into committed preadipocytes, age-specific (CP-As), which actively generate new fat.

This shows an older lady exercising and a brain.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·April 25, 2025·9 min read

Low and Moderate Exercise May Help Prevent Alzheimer’s Decline

New findings from the EXERT study reveal that both low and moderate-high intensity exercise may help preserve cognitive function in older adults with mild memory problems, a major risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. Over 12 months, participants who engaged in either form of exercise showed significantly less cognitive decline and reduced brain volume loss, especially in the prefrontal cortex, compared to a usual-care group.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·April 25, 2025·6 min read

Autistic Traits Don’t Increase Memory Decline in Older Adults

A large longitudinal study found that older adults with high levels of autistic traits experience no greater decline in spatial working memory than their neurotypical peers. Researchers tracked cognitive performance over seven years in more than 10,000 UK adults aged 50 and older.

Neuroscience

·April 25, 2025·5 min read

Blue Brain Marker Peaks in Midlife, May Predict Cognitive Aging

Researchers have mapped age-related changes in the brain’s locus coeruleus (LC), a region linked to cognition and Alzheimer’s risk, by tracking neuromelanin, a pigment that gives it its signature blue hue. In a diverse group of participants aged 19 to 86, they found an inverted U-shaped pattern: LC signal peaked in late middle age, then declined.

This shows people drinking and lounging around.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 25, 2025·6 min read

These 3 Bad Habits in Your 30s Impact Later Mental Health

A decades-long study in Finland reveals that smoking, heavy drinking, and physical inactivity in early adulthood are strongly linked to declining physical and mental health by age 36. Participants with all three habits showed elevated depression symptoms, higher metabolic risk, and lower self-rated health and wellbeing scores.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 24, 2025·4 min read

Immune Resilience Identified as Key to Healthy Aging and Longevity

A new study reveals that immune resilience, a person’s ability to maintain a robust, youthful immune system, plays a critical role in promoting long-term health and extending life. By analyzing data from over 17,000 individuals, researchers found that immune resilience, particularly involving the TCF7 gene, protects against chronic inflammation, immunosenescence, and cell death.

This shows a person sitting alone on a bench.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 23, 2025·6 min read

Middle-Aged Americans Are the Loneliest, Global Study Finds

A large international study has found that middle-aged Americans report higher levels of loneliness than older adults, a pattern seen in only one other country—the Netherlands. While loneliness generally increases with age globally, the U.S. stands out as an exception, with factors like unemployment, caregiving burdens, and lack of social support systems driving middle-aged isolation.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 22, 2025·4 min read

Rewiring Retinal Messages to Slow Vision Loss in AMD

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of adult blindness, affects nearly half of Oklahomans over age 80. New research is uncovering how retinal cells communicate using microRNA and extracellular vesicles (EVs), with the goal of slowing AMD progression.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·April 21, 2025·6 min read

Early Alzheimer’s Clues Found in Adults as Young as 24

A new study reveals that cognitive changes tied to Alzheimer's risk factors begin far earlier in life than previously thought, some as early as age 24. Researchers found associations between memory performance and cardiovascular risk factors, immune markers, and Alzheimer’s biomarkers (amyloid, tau, and neurodegeneration) in individuals aged 24–44.

This shows a brain and the outline of a person.

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·April 17, 2025·3 min read

How Age, Sex, and Genetics Shape Blood Biomarkers for Dementia

A new study reveals how age, sex, menopause, and genetics influence key blood biomarkers linked to dementia risk. Researchers analyzed data from over 1,000 people, measuring three biomarkers over a 17-year period and comparing results between those who developed dementia and those who did not.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·April 17, 2025·4 min read

Early Menopause Linked to Greater Risk of Cognitive Decline

Women who experience menopause before age 40 are more likely to face cognitive decline than those who enter menopause after age 50. The findings, based on longitudinal data from nearly 5,000 women, suggest that early menopause may be an independent risk factor for dementia, even after accounting for depression and other variables. Women with later menopause performed better on memory and orientation tests than men, while hormone replacement therapy showed no significant cognitive effect.