Old age may be associated with forgetfulness, but
researchers say that's not the norm unless the person has
atherosclerosis, diabetes, or the genes for Alzheimer's
disease.
In a study appearing in the July 7 issue of Journal of the
American Medical Association, researchers at the University
of California at Davis studied 5,888 senior citizens to
determine if mental decline was naturally a part of growing
old. Their study spanned 10 years, during which study
participants underwent a clinical health assessment every
year and cognitive function tests.
Patients were given tests such as recalling the date and
country of their birth, counting, associating various
objects with activities and following directions, such as
folding a piece of paper in half.

Analysis shows that
people with diabetes, atherosclerosis (a condition in which
the arteries harden), or those who carried the Apo4E gene
associated with Alzheimer's were eight times more likely to
show cognitive decline than people who did not have those
illnesses. Patients with atherosclerosis alone showed a
three times higher rate of decline.
"We found that individuals whose cognitive ability remained
constant during the study had two factors in common: They
did not carry any of the ApoE4 genes, which is often
associated with Alzheimer's disease, and they had little or
no signs of diabetes or atherosclerosis," says lead study
author Mary N. Haan.

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