Aging Baby Boomers Spur Brain Fitness Industry

(NEWSER) - Gyms offering to exercise the brain instead of the body are attracting thousands of aging Americans seeking to tone their gray matter, the Wall Street Journal reports. The gyms are generally based around brain-fitness software, but some offer courses in brain nutrition as well as mental-fitness assessments with personal trainers and "neurobics." More»

For middle-aged, regular Internet surfing is better than reading a book: study

(NEWSER) - Sudoku not your thing? Web surfing may help boost brain power and prevent brain shrinkage in middle-aged and older people in a way that reading books cannot, the BBC reports. By studying the brain scans of volunteers aged 55 to 76, researchers found that experienced internet users show enhanced activity in the decision-making and complex reasoning regions of their brains when searching online. More»

Frontotemporal dementia strikes early and fast

(NEWSER) - A little-known form of dementia can turn sufferers into completely different people, leaving spouses and children struggling to cope with someone who's still there in body but not in mind. Frontotemporal dementia bears some similarities to Alzheimer's—but it can hit patients who are younger and it develops faster. The New York Times tells a tragic and touching story of one couple brought to the brink of divorce before Michael French was diagnosed with the disorder; now, Ruth French has devoted her life to caring for a man who can no longer speak. More»

Sufferers expected to double by 2030, triple by 2050

(NEWSER) - The number of dementia sufferers will likely skyrocket in the coming decades, according to a new report from the World Health Organization. Today there are 35.6 million people with dementia, and that number is expected to nearly double to 65.7 million by 2030—and more than triple by 2050. "We need to increase our capacity to detect dementia early and to provide the necessary health and social care," says a WHO official. More»

And slow walkers may be at higher risk for dementia: study

(NEWSER) - If you're a slow walker or someone with a weak handshake, it may not bode well for your future. A new study finds that those who walk slowly may be more likely to develop dementia later in life, the BBC reports. Researchers looked at brain scans, walking speeds, and grip strength for 2,410 people aged, on average, 62 years. Eleven years later, 34 of them had developed dementia, and researchers found the risk was higher in those who had a slower pace. More»