This episode originally aired on October 17, 2023.
There are roughly 10,000 Baby Boomers are turning 65 every day in the United States and that will continue until about 2030, when seniors are expected to make up more than 20% of the U.S. population.
According to data from the National Institutes of Health, about 14% of Americans age 71 and older currently have some type of dementia.
While the medical community continues to look for ways to help reduce the risk of dementia, researchers at University of South Florida have been studying whether interacting with certain kinds of specially designed cognitive training exercises — essentially computer games — can reduce the risk of dementia. And so far, the research is promising.
A study called ACTIVE concluded that certain computerized brain training may reduce risk of dementia by 29-48% across 10 years. Its participants were older adults who showed no signs of cognitive impairment.
We learn about another USF study called Active Mind that is similar, but is looking for participants who do have some degree of mild cognitive impairment.
GUEST:
Dr. Jennifer O’Brien, Associate Professor of Psychology at University of South Florida and one of the lead investigators on the Active Mind study.
Click here or here to listen to our past conversations about USF's Preventing Alzheimer’s Disease with Cognitive Training (PACT) study. (from 2019 and 2022)
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