A new report in the American Journal of Public Health concludes that staying connected with family, friends, and being involved in social activities protects against memory decline in the elderly. People with high and low social integration had similar memory scores at the onset of the Health and Retirement Study. But, after following the participants for six years the researchers found that people who were highly socially integrated suffered slower rates of memory decline over time than their less social peers. Memory among the least socially integrated declined at twice the rate as among the most socially integrated. Full story.
June 2, 2008
Follow us on Twitter
Become a fan on Facebook
Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.