Of minds and men
Men are at greater risk for cognitive decline than women
All this time I’ve been blaming my husband for not listening to me when he forgets every appointment, social engagement, or other scheduled event I tell him about. And, while it is true that there have been numerous occasions where he’s so absorbed in whatever he’s reading or watching on TV that he literally does not hear a word I say, it turns out there may be more to his impaired ability to retain information I pass along to him than that he’s simply tuned me out. (Which, I’m sure most of the other married women reading this will agree is somewhat of a relief).
A recent study conducted by researchers at the Mayo Clinic found that men are more likely than women to have mild cognitive impairment — the kind that makes it difficult to remember things.
The researchers recruited 2,050 people between the ages of 70 and 89 and conducted interviews, examinations, and cognitive tests. They found that 15 percent of the total group showed signs of mild cognitive impairment. But the more significant discovery was that the men in the group were one and a half times more likely to suffer from it than the women.
This particular study didn’t offer any solutions, but that certainly doesn’t mean there aren’t any. Over the years, Dr. Wright has written several articles on the brain-protecting benefits of low-dose lithium, and this sort of mild cognitive impairment is precisely what lithium works best against. And while it looks like men may need an extra boost from this natural therapy, it benefits cognitive function in women too. To read more about it, subscribers can log on to the Archives section of www.wrightnewsletter.com with the username and password listed on page 8 of your most recent issue. Once you’re logged on, just enter “lithium” into the search option for a complete listing of all the articles and eTips that have previously covered this natural brain-booster.
Source:
“Men more likely to have problems with memory and thinking skills,” Science Daily (www.sciencedaily.com), 4/18/08
