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Education May Accelerate Alzheimer's Effects

February 16, 2006

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A new study suggests that the more education you have, the faster Alzheimer’s Disease is likely to develop, once it begins. However, researchers at Columbia University Medical Center say the disease is more likely to begin much later in highly educated people.

The study, published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, followed more than 300 Alzheimer potentials over the age of 65 for five years, subjecting each subject to various tests.

The researchers discovered that overall mental agility declined every year. But for each extra year of education a subject had received, the deterioration sped up by 0.3 percent.

In making the observation, the researchers advanced the theory of "cognitive reserve."

That suggests that highly educated people's brains develop differently over time, with an increased number of nerve connections and information hubs.

What difference does that make?

According to researchers, more substantial brain nerve connections provide a level of defense, enabling the brain to resist the damaging effects of dementia for a longer period. But when the disease develops to a certain point, the information hubs accelerate its progression.

Therefore, highly-educated people are better placed to resist the damaging affect of Alzheimer's at first. However, when the disease does develop the impact is likely to be greater because it has a higher level of accumulated damage.

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