The Eye of the Aging Tiger: Tai Chi Fights Cognitive Impairment
New findings suggest that multi-component exercise including tai chi improves cognition and memory in people with mild cognitive impairment
The brain’s winter
As we walk through the seasons of life, we change. When we approach the metaphorical winter, those changes tend to be in the direction of decline.
Our immune system sputters, the risk for cancer goes up, muscle tissue struggles to maintain its youthful appearance, joints get stiffer, and memory is spottier than it used to be (if I remember correctly…). Even our microbiome, skin, and body shape change. Of course, the extent and speed of those changes are different for each of us — due to, among others, genetics, metabolism, lifestyle, and environment — there are general trends.
Our brains, those seats of thought and identity, do not escape age either. With age, the brain shrinks in volume, stroke risk goes up, and white matter becomes more susceptible to develop lesions. Zooming in, we can see that gene activity in the brain changes as well.
Age is also the main risk factor for developing dementia. Dementia is a general term that encompasses several conditions characterized by…
