Next year, I will be celebrating the big 4-0. It seems a little absurd. I feel barely any older than I did when I enjoyed my 20th birthday. I have hardly recovered from the ups and downs of adolescence, and now I am apparently staring down the barrel of midlife.
I have tried denial, but there is no escaping the truth. It is generally accepted that middle age begins at 40 and ends in our early 60s. And while the most visible signs might be the crinkled skin around my eyes and mouth, the latest research suggests that my brain will also undergo a series of important changes in this period. They include the accelerating shrinkage of certain brain regions, loss of connectivity across the brain and damage to neurons owing to inflammation – all of which appear to contribute to later cognitive decline.
You might think this would heighten my existential anxiety. But there is room for optimism, because it has also become clear that midlife offers a vital window of opportunity to preserve our brain’s health.
The upshot is that by making specific lifestyle changes in your 40s and beyond – some of which go beyond the obvious – you can reap immediate benefits to your memory and concentration. What’s more, with some persistence, you can boost your chances of maintaining a sharp and sprightly mind well into old age, while significantly reducing your risk of dementia. “It really isn’t too late to make a difference,” says Sebastian Dohm-Hansen at University College Cork in Ireland.
It is only…
