Past studies have shown that children of divorced parents are usually more likely to become divorced in adulthood, but why is that? Experts have speculated that this association is due to psychological and social factors, but a new study that included nearly 20,000 adoptees found that these individuals had a similar divorce rate as their…

Among a sample of 364 ischemic stroke survivors, researchers found that those with a history of depression experienced worse function and cognitive outcomes. Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases, November 2017

Vascular dementia is characterized by a decline in thinking skills due to reduced or impaired blood flow to the brain. Using 35 years of data concerning nearly 1.9 million adults, researchers found that myocardial infarction survivors have an elevated risk for developing vascular dementia, and the risk rises dramatically if they also sustain a stroke…

A fifteen-year study that followed over 80,000 adults found that those with a diet high in the antioxidants beta-carotene and vitamin E had a 9-13% reduced risk for developing Parkinson’s disease during that time. Movement Disorders, September 2017

French researchers reviewed the health records of 2,041 older women who had been treated for a peripheral fragility fracture and found these patients were three to four time more likely to have a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia than women of similar age in the general population. Joint, Bone, Spine, October…

In this experiment, participants consumed what they believed to be either a two-egg or four-egg omelet on separate mornings; however, they were actually fed a three-egg omelet on both days. Interestingly, when participants ate what they believed to be the smaller omelet, they felt hungrier and consumed more calories throughout the day than on the…

According to a new study, you may not be as conscientious on the road as you think. In the study, researchers asked nine adults to participate in a driving simulation task for twenty minutes twice a day for five consecutive days intended to replicate a commute to and from work. They found that the brains…

An analysis of data from the Einstein Aging Study indicates that today’s older adults are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia than those from the previous generation. Experts suspect this decrease may be due to efforts aimed at reducing cardiovascular disease, which studies show may play a role in the…

An evaluation of data from 17 published studies indicates an association between low serum levels of vitamin E and an increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease, possibly due to the vitamin’s anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, August 2017

Sophisticated brain scans may allow doctors to detect consciousness in brain-injured patients who appear unconscious. According to a new study that included 16 severe brain injury patients, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) can help reveal a level of consciousness that can’t be detected by a typical neurological examination. Study author Dr. Brian…