Healthy Aging
Did You Know?
- People are living on average 30 years longer.
- Our bodies may have “switches” (e.g. genes) that influence how quickly we age.
- The science of aging has the potential to do what no drug, surgery, or behavioral modification can.
- This generation and all that follow have the potential to live longer, healthier lives than any in history.
Center for BrainHealth Programs
A great deal of information is available on overall healthy aging, but few centers focus on how to optimize brain health. UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth is specifically interested in how to optimize and protect brain function throughout life. More information is available about healthy aging in the Research and Clinical/Treatment sections.
About Healthy Aging
One of the greatest achievements in the last century was the doubling of the lifespan. One focus of science is to learn what people can do to maintain cognitive abilities into old age.
Critical components of brain health:
- Engage in life rather than being a passive bystander
- Limit stress
- Consider diet: a heart healthy diet is a brain healthy diet
- Watch your medical numbers, particularly blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar
Treatment
We obtain regular check ups for cholesterol levels, breast cancer, colon and prostate problems, but we virtually ignore our brain health. One reason for this is because few options exist for individuals who experience subtle changes in thinking abilities. UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth has developed a test battery to evaluate higher level thinking abilities and hopes that brain health check-ups will become a regular part of health care. Monitoring brain function could alert professionals to potentially treatable conditions that affect thinking abilities, promote more timely diagnosis, and provide an opportunity to educate individuals on how to strengthen or preserve brain function.
Links and Resources
Limited options are available to obtain brain health evaluations in the absence of memory changes or decline in thinking abilities. More information is available about brain physicals.
For more information about healthy aging, the following websites may be helpful.
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