By Cheree Cleghorn, Editor

Just in time for Labor Day, there is great news for all adults.

A noted aging expert says we will be healthier, happier and smarter if keep working our whole lives — whether paid, volunteer or part-time.

“Life is so much about the choices you make,” he also says.

We are not all doomed to memory loss or other indignities when we take care of our brains. Obviously, the exceptions are diseases like Alzheimer’s, which none of us can prevent or, at least, not yet.

In the September issue of the Washingtonian Magazine, Leslie Milk conducted a delightful interview (which unfortunately is not online) which brings us the good news from aging expert and author, Gene Cohen, M.D. His recent book is The Mature Mind:The Positive Power of the Aging Brain.

Dr. Cohen says that a widely-accepted belief that aging causes mental deterioration has its roots in the education gap that existed prior to the 1970s.

“In 1960, the typical education level of someone over 65 was 8.7 years. By 1990, it was 12.1.”

(Ed. Note: Many studies show a positive relationship between education and good health.)

Chocolate For The Brain

Writer Milk asked, “How does the older brain function differently from that of a 20 year-old?”

Dr. Cohen’s answer: “The brain is continuously changing, responding to experience and learning. We’ve just become aware that there are other positive changes. Young people tend to use one side of the brain or the other predominately to solve mental problems. A researcher at Duke did a functional MRI and PET scans of people over 50 while they were performing tasks. The researchers discovered that older people had less hemispheric asymmetry; they were using both sides of the brain together.

“Initially, other scientists disparaged the discovery as a desperate response of a brain starting to fail. But we’ve learned that this ‘brain recruitment’ is an asset. The convergence allows you to look at different things in different ways. You have a new capacity. Any activity where the brain can optimally use both sides—that activity is chocolate for the brain.” (Emphasis added.)

The kinds of activities he mentions—the chocolate—-include “community education courses, book and writing groups, arts programs, and challenging work—-volunteer, paid, or part-time—-boost development of the brain in the second half of life.”

Leslie Milk: “What have you learned about life?”

Dr. Cohen: “Life is so much about the choices you make……”

Primary Source: September, 2007, Washingtonian Magazine interview by Leslie Milk, “What I Have Learned.” (Not online.)

Cited Source: The Positive Power of the Aging Brain,” by Gene Cohen, M.D.