QuickWitz launches YouTube Channel

From the beginning of QuickWitz, I have enjoyed the presentations to community groups and senior homes. I always wanted to be there for support for delivery of the program. The teacher in me says, "Try it this way." Now I have found a way to do that. Take a peek at QuickWitz Tips on YouTube.
This is my attempt to be completely "transparent", mistakes and all!  And I made some. 

Take a look:  Working Memory: 2 BACK

If bees can...why can't I?  Researchers have found that older momma bees...maybe grandmomma bees, who return to the nest and take up the duties again, renew their youth and "significantly improved their ability to learn new things."  In the future will we reap the benefits of this research?

Read the rest of the story:
 Reverse Brain Aging: Evidence in Bees

Us: Staying Young and Looking Good

There is a never ending stream of info about how we can, even as we inevitably age, stay young and look good.  This piece is especially impactful, since they put a number on it, "nearly 2 decades."  What?  Can I look 16 years younger...really?  For me, that pushes me back to 40-something, which works for me.  Babies were birthed and becoming teens---back in that day, there was little time to be "looking good" just looking different.  Soooo, if I can look, now, like I wanted to look then, I will take it.
Read it for yourself

Brain Training Habit Worth Forming

From the University of California, Berkeley comes the following report:

A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, provides even more reason for people to read a book or do a puzzle, and to make such activities a lifetime habit. Brain scans revealed that people with no symptoms of Alzheimer's who engaged in cognitively stimulating activities throughout their lives had fewer deposits of beta-amyloid, a destructive protein that is the hallmark of the disease.

While previous research has suggested that engaging in mentally stimulating activities -- such as reading, writing and playing games -- may help stave off Alzheimer's later in life, this new study identifies the biological target at play. This discovery could guide future research into effective prevention strategies.

"These findings point to a new way of thinking about how cognitive engagement throughout life affects the brain," said study principal investigator Dr. William Jagust, a professor with joint appointments at UC Berkeley's Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, the School of Public Health and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "Rather than simply providing resistance to Alzheimer's, brain-stimulating activities may affect a primary pathological process in the disease. This suggests that cognitive therapies could have significant disease-modifying treatment benefits if applied early enough, before symptoms appear."

Read the rest of this compelling research.

Brain Stimulating Habits Linked to Lower Alzheimer's 

 

This is just one more in a long list of research publications which is touting the justification of mental fitness activities. Again and again, we are told, "There is no cure, BUT...the time for intervention is sooner than later, AND...there is no downside to cognitive activity, THEREFORE...make such activities a lifetime habit...starting today.

Memories...pressed against the pages of my mind

Our generation, that's the Baby Boomer generation, is coming of age again.  They wrote about us in the 60's...and, yes, we created a revolution.  In the 70's-80's, we were responsible for a boom in housing, as we came of age again and began raising families.  So, it is nothing new that we will usher in another age, but we are reluctant this time.  Memories are precious.  They connect me with my youth, my past, my hometown, my departed grandparents, my old friends.  I do not want to be a shell of a person. 


At our age, we have each had some experience with memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer's...a grandparent, parent, maybe a classmate.  All too close for comfort.  Is it inevitable for me?

No!  But know the signs, the signals, the measures to employ now to continue productivity as long as the body is warm.


Read what the experts are saying:
Must I accept that memory loss is a given?

Cognitive Decline Begins When?????????

I guess when you have passed that 60 year-old mile marker, there is a certain smirkiness that rises from your innards when you hear those "young things" at 45 are about to come face-to-face with science that says, "Quit laughing at us.  You are already there!"  I am fairly certain that it was the big 6-0 that ushered in the catty comments about my forgetfulness or tip-of-the-tongue experiences.  And for all of us who have arrived, we can say the same thing we said at the big 5-0... it doesn't feel any different.
So look at the results of the British Medical Journal, as reported on ABC.  We need to be aware that while dementia cannot be cured, it can be kicked on down the road if not completely avoided...if we do the right things for our body and our brains.
Mental Decline Begins Earlier Than Believed

More Second Act

This online resource from Entrepreneur.com continues to offer motivation and inspiration.  Having dreams and goals that require hard work give us a reason to write resolutions and then keep them.  For too long we have looked at the retirement age as the point at which we begin to "sit it out."  I love that country song which features a mom singing the song for her daughter, "When you have the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance."  So read Second Act and then, "Dance."

Second Act: Reinvent Yourself