alzheimer's and education

Retired? Sign up for a continuing education course and eat salad every day.

Playing for keeps: Mental challenges and lifelong learning help your brain stay fit and sharp.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—People with higher education levels are less likely to show signs of Alzheimer’s disease even if their brains are covered in the plaque lesions that are characteristic of the disorder, according to a study published in the Archives of Neurology.

THE DETAILS: Washington University researchers scanned the brains of 37 people with dementia and 161 people without it, gave them cognitive tests, and found out how long they attended school. People whose brains had little plaque buildup performed the best on the cognitive tests. But when researchers looked at people with a lot of brain plaque, they found that those who’d continued schooling after high school still scored well on the cognitive tests.

WHAT IT MEANS: No one’s sure what causes Alzheimer’s, but this study adds to research suggesting that keeping your brain sharp and active could be protective against symptoms of memory loss and confusion caused by the disease.

Here some ways to keep your brain in good mental shape: