scholarly journals Playing Minecraft Improves Hippocampal-Associated Memory for Details in Middle Aged Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig E. L. Stark ◽  
Gregory D. Clemenson ◽  
Ujwal Aluru ◽  
Nikki Hatamian ◽  
Shauna M. Stark
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Enrichment ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Middle Aged Adults ◽  
Age Related Cognitive Decline ◽  
The Impact

Concerns are often raised about the impact that playing video games may have on cognition and behavior, whether gameplay is intense and protracted as with competitive Esports or whether it is more casual gameplay. Work in our lab and others, however, has shown that at least some classes of games can improve memory function. In particular, playing immersive 3D games that provide rich experiences and novelty improve memory on tasks that rely upon the hippocampus in effects that mirror the effects of “environmental enrichment” in numerous rodent studies. Our goal in the present study was to determine whether even modest amounts of gameplay (~30 min/day for 4 weeks) would result in improved memory performance in middle-aged adults. Not only is this demographic potentially highly receptive to gaming (they make up a significant portion of Esports viewers and of game players), but interventions in middle age may be a prime time for reducing later age-related cognitive decline. Here, we found that the benefits in middle age paralleled effects previously observed in young adults as playing Minecraft, showing improved memory performance on a hippocampal dependent memory task.

scholarly journals Sedentary Behavior, Sleep Quality, and Subjective Memory Function in Middle-Aged Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 959-960
Author(s):  
Yen Chen ◽  
Carole Holahan ◽  
Darla Castelli
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Direct Effect ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Sitting Time ◽  
Sedentary Behaviors ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Subjective Memory ◽  
Middle Aged Adults ◽  
Significant Direct Effect

Abstract While there is evidence that prolonged sedentary behaviors (SB) are associated with poor memory performance, less is known about the effect of SB on subjective memory. Poor subjective memory could be an early symptom of mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Besides SB, sleep quality has been identified as an essential component of cognitive health. Yet little is known about the effects of different types of SB on sleep quality and how such effects could, in turn, affect middle-aged adults’ subjective memory. The sample included 306 adults ranging in age from 40 to 60 (M = 44.42) from Amazon MTurk. Mediation analysis with PROCESS (Hayes, 2013) was used to examine the mediational path, controlling for demographic variables. Exploratory factor analysis categorized 10 different sedentary activities into Common Engaging SB (e.g., sitting in cars), High Engaging/Leisure SB (e.g., doing hobbies when sitting), and Less Engaging/Passive SB (e.g., watching TV). Common Engaging SB included a variety of behaviors, including transportation, reading, talking on the phone, and socializing. Common Engaging SB had a significant direct effect on sleep quality (B = 0.19, p < .001) and frequency of forgetting (B = -1.61, p < .001), and sleep quality had a significant direct effect on frequency of forgetting (B = -1.90, p < .001). Sleep quality mediated the association between Common Engaging SB and frequency of forgetting (indirect effect = -0.05, 95% bootstrap CI = -0.09, -0.02). Reducing sitting time, particularly Common Engaging SB, could be a useful strategy to improve subjective memory functioning.

Young and Middle Aged Adults Differ in Neural Correlate of Sustained Attention: A fNIRS Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shweta Shenoy ◽  
Prachi Khandekar ◽  
Abhinav Sathe
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Middle Aged Adults

: Sustained attention (SA) is a construct of cognition that tends to decline with age. There is a lack of literature regarding the neural correlates of SA in middle age, a link between young and old age. This study evaluated the differences in SA ability and its neural correlates using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) between young and middle-aged adults. 38 young and 25 middle-aged adults were evaluated for the changes in neural correlates (oxy and deoxyhemoglobin concentration in the prefrontal cortex) during a SA task known as cognition. The results showed that young adults performed significantly better than middle-aged adults on the SA task with no gender difference in their performance. There was a significant difference in the prefrontal activation pattern between young and middle-aged adults. We found right prefrontal dominance in young adults and left the prefrontal authority in middle-aged adults. This study concludes that the ability to maintain SA diminishes with age, advancing from young to middle age. Hemodynamic findings confirmed significant differences in neural resources in the prefrontal cortical areas between young and middle age. Findings document the neurobiological basis of age-related decline in the middle-aged population to understand changes in the brain's functioning during SA-related cognitive tasks.

scholarly journals Impaired Sensorimotor Processing During Complex Gait Precedes Behavioral Changes in Middle-aged Adults

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (12) ◽  
pp. 1861-1869 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trina Mitchell ◽  
Faryn Starrs ◽  
Jean-Paul Soucy ◽  
Alexander Thiel ◽  
Caroline Paquette
Keyword(s):  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Progressive Failure ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Synaptic Activity ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Sensorimotor Processing ◽  
18F Fluorodeoxyglucose ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Middle Aged Adults

Abstract Gait impairment during complex walking in older adults is thought to result from a progressive failure to compensate for deteriorating peripheral inputs by central neural processes. It is the primary hypothesis of this article that failure of higher cerebral adaptations may already be present in middle-aged adults who do not present observable gait impairments. We, therefore, compared metabolic brain activity during steering of gait (ie, complex locomotion) and straight walking (ie, simple locomotion) in young and middle-aged individuals. Cerebral distribution of [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose, a marker of brain synaptic activity, was assessed during over ground straight walking and steering of gait using positron emission tomography in seven young adults (aged 24 ± 3) and seven middle-aged adults (aged 59 ± 3). Brain regions involved in steering of gait (posterior parietal cortex, superior frontal gyrus, and cerebellum) are retained in middle age. However, despite similar walking performance, there are age-related differences in the distribution of [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose during steering: middle-aged adults have (i) increased activation of precentral and fusiform gyri, (ii) reduced deactivation of multisensory cortices (inferior frontal, postcentral, and fusiform gyri), and (iii) reduced activation of the middle frontal gyrus and cuneus. Our results suggest that preclinical decline in central sensorimotor processing in middle age is observable during complex walking.

Theoretical Aspects of the Study of the Transformational Potential of Parental Loss for Middle-Aged Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-66
Author(s):  
Oksana P. Shchotka
Keyword(s):  
Middle Age ◽  
Personality Development ◽  
Age Factors ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Parental Relationship ◽  
Post Traumatic Growth ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Middle Aged Adults ◽  
The Impact

The loss of the last of the parents is an understudied and underestimated phenomenon in Ukrainian psychological science in terms of the development of middle-aged adults. The purpose of the study: to identify the role of the loss of both parents in the personal transformation of the adult. To achieve this purpose, the methods of theoretical knowledge were applied: analysis, generalisation, systematization, and interpretation. The methodological framework of the study was formed by the idea of middle age as a time of deep self-cognition, the unification of opposing tendencies, the reaching of mature responsibility, and theoretical ideas of post-traumatic growth. To achieve this purpose, the methods of theoretical cognition were applied: analysis, generalisation, systematization, and interpretation. It was found that the death of the last living parent leads to changes in identity, reassessment of life, relationships, to the use of methods of activity that were previously unavailable. It has been determined that middle-age orphanhood activates specific mechanisms of personality development: loss of existential security (“I am face to face with the world”), actualisation of the fear of death (“I will be the next”). As a result, mature responsibility is born, the fact of the inevitability of personal death is accepted. None of the other normative-age factors have such a strong transformational potential. The most important mediating factor of changes in the adult’s personality is the completeness/incompleteness of the child’s parental relationship with the deceased parents. Incomplete child-parent relationship becomes a source of personal trauma and at the same time contains a powerful resource of personal transformations. The prospect of further study of the long-term consequences of orphanhood in middle age is considered in the empirical verification of the impact of this event on the life and personality of the adult from the subjective standpoint

scholarly journals Association between dietary saccharide intake and self-reported memory performance in middle-aged adults

2008 ◽  
Vol 101 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Talitha Best ◽  
Eva Kemps ◽  
Janet Bryan
Keyword(s):  
Dietary Intake ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Memory Functioning ◽  
Middle Aged Adults ◽  
Usual Diet

The aims of the present study were to assess dietary intake of saccharides in middle-aged adults, and to determine whether intakes of these sugar nutrients were related to self-reported memory performance. A population-based sample of 1183 men and women (aged 40–60 years) completed questionnaires assessing everyday memory function. Dietary intake status of saccharides was estimated using a self-completed, quantified FFQ. After controlling for demographic and health measures (for example, time spent exercising, smoking and alcohol consumption), saccharide intake was related to better self-reported memory functioning. Thus, longer-term intakes of saccharides through the usual diet may be positively related to perceived memory performance in mid-life.

scholarly journals Enriching hippocampal memory function in older adults through video games

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory D. Clemenson ◽  
Shauna M. Stark ◽  
Samantha M. Rutledge ◽  
Craig E.L. Stark
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Cognitive Decline ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Environmental Enrichment ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Age Related Cognitive Decline

AbstractHealthy aging is accompanied by a steady cognitive decline with clear losses in memory. Animal studies have consistently demonstrated that simply modifying an animal’s living environment (known as environmental enrichment) can have a positive influence on age-related cognitive decline in the hippocampus. Previously, we showed that playing immersive 3D video games can improve hippocampal-based memory in young healthy adults, suggesting that the exploration of the large open worlds of modern-day video games may act as proxy for environmental enrichment in humans. Here, we replicated our previous video game study in older adults and showing that playing video games for 4 weeks can improve hippocampal-based memory in a population that is already experiencing age-related decline in this memory. Furthermore, we showed that the improvements last for up to 4 weeks past the intervention, highlighting the potential of video games as intervention for age-related cognitive decline.

scholarly journals A cross-sectional study on interference control: age affects reactive control but not proactive control

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e8365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanfang Peng ◽  
Qin Zhu ◽  
Biye Wang ◽  
Jie Ren
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Efficiency Score ◽  
Interference Control ◽  
Reactive Control ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Age Related ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Impact

Background Working memory updating (WMU), a controlled process to continuously adapt to the changing task demand and environment, is crucial for cognitive executive function. Although previous studies have shown that the elderly were more susceptible to cognitive interference than the youngsters, the picture of age-related deterioration of WMU is incomplete due to lack of study on people at their middle ages. Thus, the present study investigated the impact of age on the WMU among adults by a cross-sectional design to verify whether inefficiency interference control accounts for the aging of WMU. Methods In total, 112 healthy adults were recruited for this study; 28 old adults (21 female) ranging from 60 to 78 years of age; 28 middle-age adults (25 female) ranging from 45 to 59 years of age; 28 adults (11 female) ranging from 26 to 44 years of age; and 28 young adults (26 female) ranging from 18 to 25 years of age. Each participant completed a 1-back task. The inverse efficiency score was calculated in various sequences of three trials in a row to quantify the performance of WMU for adults of various ages. Results Inverse efficiency score of both young groups (young adult and adult) were significantly shorter than the old group in both Repeat-Alternate (RA, including □□○ and ○○□) and Alternate-Alternate (AA, including ○□○ and □○□) sequential patterns and they were additionally better than the middle-age group in AA sequential pattern. Conclusion With the increase of difficulty in the task, the difference in reactive interference control between young and middle age was gradually revealed, while the difference between young and old remained to apparent. The degradation of WMU aging may begin from middle-age and presents selective impairment in that only reactive interference control, but not proactive interference control, shows pronounced age-related decline. The preliminary results can inform future studies to further explore the whole lifespan trajectories of cognitive functions.

scholarly journals Missionaries, Middle Age, and the Generative Life

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Robert Dunaetz
Keyword(s):  
Adult Development ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Life Narrative ◽  
Values And Beliefs ◽  
Middle Aged Adults

By the time career missionaries reach middle age, the risk of personal stagnation is high. Some missionaries, however, are very productive during this period of life. In Erickson’s classic description of adult development, middle-aged adults who successfully navigate this period need to lead a generative life, learning how to positively influence future generations. This paper reviews recent literature on the predictors of generativity, including awareness of early blessings and calling, awareness of others’ problems and pain, strong values and beliefs, pursuing goals to benefit others, and the presence of redemptive sequences in one’s life narrative (the story that we tell ourselves and others which helps define our identity). Missionaries are encouraged to update their life narrative, going beyond the story of their conversion to Christianity, to include stories of how God has worked in their lives in recent years.

scholarly journals Emotional Working Memory and Alzheimer’s Disease

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Mammarella ◽  
Beth Fairfield
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Memory Performance ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Emotional Information ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Affective Stimuli ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Dementia Of Alzheimer’S Type

A number of recent studies have reported that working memory does not seem to show typical age-related deficits in healthy older adults when emotional information is involved. Differently, studies about the short-term ability to encode and actively manipulate emotional information in dementia of Alzheimer’s type are few and have yielded mixed results. Here, we review behavioural and neuroimaging evidence that points to a complex interaction between emotion modulation and working memory in Alzheimer’s. In fact, depending on the function involved, patients may or may not show an emotional benefit in their working memory performance. In addition, this benefit is not always clearly biased (e.g., towards negative or positive information). We interpret this complex pattern of results as a consequence of the interaction between multiple factors including the severity of Alzheimer’s disease, the nature of affective stimuli, and type of working memory task.

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