By Amber Roman
Mar 27, 2024, 3:40 PM EDT
In a groundbreaking study that could have significant implications for long-term brain health, It has been found that the size of the human brain is experiencing a gradual increase over time. This trend, according to the researchers, could be associated with a reduction in the risk of dementia in younger generations.
The study, led by neurologist Charles DeCarli of the University of California Davis and published in JAMA Network, analyzed brain images of more than 3,000 American individuals between 55 and 65 years old. The results revealed that those born in the 1970s had an overall brain volume that was 6.6 percent larger than those born in the 1930s.
Besides, Members of Generation X were observed to have a nearly 8 percent increase in white matter volume and a staggering nearly 15 percent increase in surface gray matter volume compared to members of the Silent Generation.
One of the most significant findings was the increase in the size of the hippocampus, a key region of the brain associated with memory and learning. This area showed a 5.7 percent increase in volume across the generations studied, even after adjusting for factors such as height, age and sex.
DeCarli noted that, although Genetics plays an important role in determining brain sizethe findings suggest that external influences, such as health, social, cultural and educational factors, can also have a significant impact.
The onset of dementia could decrease in the next generations
Dementia is a growing concern globally, with millions of people affected worldwide. However, there is a hopeful note: The incidence of dementia in the United States and Europe has decreased by approximately 13 percent every decade in the last three decades.
This suggests that the absolute risk of dementia could be decreasing among younger generations, possibly due to healthier lifestyles and education.
Dementia is characterized by a thinning of the gray matter of the brain, which affects cognitive processes such as memory, learning and reasoning. Since the aging brain tends to gradually shrink over time, having a larger brain volume early on could help protect against age-related loss.
Previous studies have supported the so-called “brain reserve hypothesis,” which suggests that a larger brain may provide a reserve that buffers the effects of aging and brain-related diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.
To investigate whether brain size could explain the lower incidence of dementia in younger generations, DeCarli and his team used data from the Framingham Heart Study, which tracked the health of Americans born between 1930 and 1980. The results showed consistently larger brain volumes. brain in younger generations, both in general and regionally.
Although some neuroscientists question whether brain volume is an adequate indicator of brain reserve, DeCarli and colleagues suggest that Greater brain volume may be associated with better brain health and increased neural connectivity, which could help buffer the effects of aging and brain diseases.
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