Dementia v. Ageing

Today it seems as though Dementia is a part of ageing.  Is it?  As we grow older, do our minds also diminish in abilities, while our bodies begin to sag, atrophy, and become mere masses of jiggly flesh?  of course not.  Nor are those descriptors accurate (but they were fun to imagine, yes?).

There are studies that do reflect the theory that as we grow older our minds also seem to decline.  However, those are not longitudinal studies, and fail to account for the variables.

Huh?  What did you just say?

Well, according to at least one study, it would appear that our brains begin to stop working as effectively in our 20's, and decline on a steep decent from then on.

However, this study was done by speaking with individuals, within a certain realm of time.  The factors that aren't thought of are:

1)  Educational Level

2)  Lifestyle

3)  Looking at each individual over a range of time to actually see if (and how) their mental capacities are affected by age.  

Rather, these individuals are simply picked and then tested - how reliable is this information?  Not really.  

Think, rather, of Violet Crowley in Downton Abbey - she's pretty sharp.   Betty White?  Another example.  Jessica Tandy, Helen Hayes, Grandma Moses, Agatha Christie, George Burns, and many, many, others, who lived to a ripe old age, and never ceased to be sharp as tacks.  

Despite what the media and others might have you believe, if you keep your mind active, live healthily, and keep yourself challenged, chances are you, too, can still keep your faculties, should you be lucky enough to pass the upper benchmarks...

Ageing and Dementia go hand in hand only insofar as older folk seem to be more afflicted, but at least 2:1 will be able to avoid such a diagnosis; they will be more prone to diabetes, perhaps.  But that's for another day.