1. Lifestyle and the aging brain: interactive effects of modifiable lifestyle behaviors and cognitive ability in men from midlife to old age
- Author
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Mark Sanderson-Cimino, Ruth McKenzie, Matthew S. Panizzon, Carol E. Franz, Christine Fennema-Notestine, Jeremy A. Elman, McKenna E. Williams, William S. Kremen, Hong Xian, Anders M. Dale, Chandra A. Reynolds, Sean N. Hatton, Xin M. Tu, Michael C. Neale, Rahul C. Pearce, Nathan Whitsel, Michael J. Lyons, Donald J. Hagler, Richard L. Hauger, Lisa T. Eyler, Rosemary Toomey, Teresa Warren, Nathan A. Gillespie, and Olivia K. Puckett
- Subjects
Male ,Gerontology ,Aging ,Disease ,Neurodegenerative ,Alzheimer's disease brain signature ,Alzheimer's Disease ,Cognition ,Cognitive Reserve ,Medicine ,Aging brain ,Young adult ,skin and connective tissue diseases ,Cognitive reserve ,General Neuroscience ,Age Factors ,Modifiable lifestyle behavior ,Middle Aged ,White Matter ,Neurological ,Biomedical Imaging ,Independent Living ,Adult ,White matter abnormalities ,Clinical Sciences ,General cognitive ability ,Affect (psychology) ,Article ,Young Adult ,Alzheimer Disease ,Clinical Research ,Behavioral and Social Science ,Acquired Cognitive Impairment ,Humans ,Dementia ,Healthy Lifestyle ,Life Style ,Aged ,Behavior ,Neurology & Neurosurgery ,business.industry ,Prevention ,Neurosciences ,Mild cognitive impairment ,Alzheimer's Disease including Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) ,medicine.disease ,Twin study ,Brain Disorders ,Brain aging ,Neurology (clinical) ,Geriatrics and Gerontology ,business ,Developmental Biology - Abstract
We examined the influence of lifestyle on brain aging after nearly 30 years, and tested the hypothesis that young adult general cognitive ability (GCA) would moderate these effects. In the community-dwelling Vietnam Era Twin Study of Aging (VETSA), 431 largely non-Hispanic white men completed a test of GCA at mean age 20. We created a modifiable lifestyle behavior composite from data collected at mean age 40. During VETSA, MRI-based measures at mean age 68 included predicted brain age difference (PBAD), Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain signature, and abnormal white matter scores. There were significant main effects of young adult GCA and lifestyle on PBAD and the AD signature (ps ≤ 0.012), and a GCA-by-lifestyle interaction on both (ps ≤ 0.006). Regardless of GCA level, having more favorable lifestyle behaviors predicted less advanced brain age and less AD-like brain aging. Unfavorable lifestyles predicted advanced brain aging in those with lower age 20 GCA, but did not affect brain aging in those with higher age 20 GCA. Targeting early lifestyle modification may promote dementia risk reduction, especially among lower reserve individuals.
- Published
- 2021