Cognitive Tests

We have all heard that "age doesn't matter if your heart is full of life," while it may be true in some sense, one needs to be attentive to their age and address the complexities it brings into life. As women move to their 30s, the body instantly starts experiencing the turbulence of hormonal changes. They become more susceptible to a multitude of diseases waiting at this stretch of the age group. In order to stay healthy and avoid the varied form of diseases, women above 30 years of age must undergo the following tests: Heart Screening Through Blood Tests: Your heart can skip a beat and you might not even get to know it. Many times women tend to experience racing heartbeats, chronic fatigue, and high levels of anxiety but ignore all the symptoms of cardiovascular problems very easily. Most of the time they assume that a heavy workload is causing this trouble. Little do they know that these can be the warning signs about their heart condition. What to do then? Simple. Start with the basics. Book your blood tests either via online diagnostic platforms or simply from the one near you. These tests must include a hs-CRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein) test along with blood pressure, cholesterol tests, blood glucose tests, and BMI measurements to check obesity. The hs-CRP tests indicate the risk of heart attack by measuring C-reactive protein which is a marker of inflammation or infection associated with heart issues. Regular Diabetes Screening: Diabetes is a major concern for populations worldwide. Since diabetes can cause major health complications among women such as kidney issues, cardiovascular problems, and other diseases, it is important that women above 30 keep a thorough and regular check on their blood glucose levels. Diabetes can be screened through a variety of tests such as fasting plasma glucose test (FPG), HA1C test (determine average blood glucose), random plasma glucose test, and oral glucose tolerance test. If you have a history of diabetes in your family, then it can impact your present as well as the future relationship with diabetes. Women above 30 with a family history of diabetes must ensure diabetes screening at regular intervals of time. Thyroid Function Test: Regular thyroid testing is very essential for women above 30 as with age, the risk of developing thyroid disorders increases. Doing the thyroid function test can help women take control of their health and ensure they receive the care they need to maintain optimal thyroid function. Many bodily functions including temperature regulation, metabolism, and energy production are regulated by hormones produced by the thyroid gland. And, when the thyroid gland stops functioning normally, a wide range of symptoms can start occurring in the body including sudden weight gain or loss, mood swings, fatigue, and many more. To counteract this, women above the age of 30 must get their thyroid levels checked on a regular basis. A simple thyroid profile test through blood samples can measure the levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) in the blood and determine whether the thyroid gland is functioning normally. If the levels are abnormal, further testing and treatment may be needed to help manage the thyroid disorder and improve overall health and well-being. It's also important to note that women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should also have their thyroid levels checked, as thyroid disorders can affect both the mother and the developing fetus. Check your Breasts via Mammography: As you reach your 30s don't shy away from knowing your breasts in and out. Having an in-depth evaluation of your breasts via mammography tests can ease your life. Doing so will not only minimize the chances of complexities ahead but also will uncover your 'might-have fear. Mammography is one of the most crucial aspects that women above 30 should highly consider. This test comprises screening of your breasts through an X-ray image to investigate symptoms or unusual findings like lumps in them. It is an important tool to rule out whether a woman suffers from breast cancer or not. In India, clinical examination is suggested to women of age 30-40 years every 6 months by an oncologist as per the general guidelines followed in the country. For women of age between 41-55 years, clinicians advise annual mammography tests along with examinations by the oncologist. And women who have crossed the age of 55 are suggested to go for a mammogram once in 2 years. Present times are very vulnerable for women to develop breast cancer. However, critical issues can be avoided with attentive and preventive measures. Cervical Cancer Evaluation via Pap Smear Test: As the incidence of cervical cancer in women is increasing rapidly, it has become all the more important for women above 30 to take significant measures about it. One of the vital tools that helps in evaluating cervical cancer in women is a Pap smear test, which detects abnormal cells in the cervix before they turn cancerous. The rule of thumb says that women above 30 should undergo a Pap smear test minimum of once every 3 years. However, it may vary from individual to individual basis their risk factors. The bottom line is that women shouldn't neglect the warning signs and adopt more preventive care in their lifestyle. With continuous monitoring and evaluation by specialized doctors, many critical illnesses can be detected early, treated, and even prevented. Nowadays, it is very simple to book any type of diagnostic test. All you need is a mobile phone and all the quality healthcare services are available right at your fingertips. One credible diagnostic service-providing App on your phone is enough to keep your health in check. Remember women, age can actually be just a number if you are taking up routine essential tests. (Dr. Jasmin Rath, Obstetrician, and Gynaecologist, Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad & Apollo 24/7) Read More►Effective Tips to Manage Obesity

New York: Scientists have demonstrated that normal brain ageing is accelerated by approximately 26 per cent in people with progressive Type 2 diabetes compared with individuals without the disease, according to a study. There is already strong evidence linking Type 2 diabetes with cognitive decline, yet few patients currently undergo a comprehensive cognitive assessment as part of their clinical care. The results, published today in eLife, suggest that by the time Type 2 diabetes is formally diagnosed, there may already be significant structural damage to the brain. The findings also suggest that the patterns of Type 2 diabetes-related neurodegeneration strongly overlap with those of normal ageing, but that neurodegeneration is accelerated. Sensitive ways to detect diabetes-associated changes to the brain are therefore urgently needed. "Routine clinical assessments for diagnosing diabetes typically focus on blood glucose, insulin levels and body mass percentage," said Botond Antal, a doctoral student at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University, US. "However, the neurological effects of Type 2 diabetes may reveal themselves many years before they can be detected by standard measures, so by the time Type 2 diabetes is diagnosed by conventional tests, patients may have already sustained irreversible brain damage," Antal added. The team evaluated the relationship between typical brain ageing and that seen in Type 2 diabetes from a dataset, which includes brain scans and brain function measurements, of 20,000 people aged 50 to 80 years old. The results were then compared with a meta-analysis of nearly 100 other studies. Their analysis showed that both ageing and Type 2 diabetes cause changes in executive functions such as working memory, learning and flexible thinking, and changes in brain processing speed. However, people with diabetes had a further 13.1 per cent decrease in executive function beyond age-related effects, and their processing speed decreased by a further 6.7 per cent compared to people of the same age without diabetes. Further, MRI scans of people with and without diabetes showed that people with diabetes had even more pronounced decreases in gray matter beyond the typical age-related effects -- a further 6.2 per cent decrease in grey matter in the ventral striatum, but also loss of grey matter in other regions, compared with normal ageing. "Our findings suggest that Type 2 diabetes and its progression may be associated with accelerated brain ageing, potentially due to compromised energy availability causing significant changes to brain structure and function," said Lilianne Mujica-Parodi, at the varsity's Director of the Laboratory for Computational Neurodiagnostics. "By the time diabetes is formally diagnosed, this damage may already have occurred. Our results underscore the need for research into brain-based biomarkers for Type 2 diabetes and treatment strategies that specifically target its neurocognitive effects," Mujica-Parodi noted. (Agency) Read More► Does Vitamin D Affect Fertility?

Toronto- Worries and anxiety over the Covid-19 pandemic can impair basic cognitive functions, leading to poorer decision making, delays in mental processing speed, and alteration of the perception of risk, finds a study. The study led by researchers at McGill University and The Neuro - Montreal Neurological Institute - Hospital surveyed 1,517 people to assess the lingering impacts of the pandemic on a combination of cognitive tasks, targeting vital brain functions such as processing and maintaining information, The Times of Israel reported. "The impairments associated with worry observed here suggest that under periods of high stress, like a global pandemic, our ability to think, plan, and evaluate risks is altered," Kevin da Silva Castanheira, the lead author of the study and a graduate student in McGill's Department of Psychology, was quoted as saying. The survey asked subjects to rate their concerns over Covid-19, and then challenged them with various cognitive tests and compared the results to pre-pandemic samples. The tests measured things like reaction to stimuli - the ability to process and interpret information, and risk assessment. The results showed that people who felt higher rates of fear or worry related to the pandemic did not perform as highly on simple cognitive tasks, and were more likely to experience "reduced information processing speed, ability to retain information needed to perform tasks, and heightened sensitivity to the odds they were given when taking risks". "The impact of stress and of worry on cognitive function are well known, but are typically studied in the laboratory setting," said Madeleine Sharp, a neurologist at The Neuro. "Here, we're able to extend these findings by studying the effects of a real-world stressor in a large sample." The findings are consistent with a study by Israeli researchers which showed that children experienced more stress as a result of the pandemic, exhibited unhealthy social and dietary habits, and were even prone to higher rates of violence, the report said. Read More► Ancient Gout Drug May Cut Covid-Related Death by 50%: Study

US researchers have discovered a gene that may help explain why some people who lead enriching lives are less prone to Alzheimer's and age-related dementia. Many people develop Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia as they get older. However, others remain sharp well into old age, even if their brains show underlying signs of neurodegeneration. Among these cognitively resilient people, researchers have identified education level and amount of time spent on intellectually stimulating activities as factors that help prevent dementia. The study, led by researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, showed that this kind of enrichment appears to activate a gene family called MEF2, which controls a genetic programme in the brain that promotes resistance to cognitive decline. The researchers observed this link between MEF2 and cognitive resilience in both humans and mice. The findings suggest that enhancing the activity of MEF2 or its targets might protect against age-related dementia. "It's increasingly understood that there are resilience factors that can protect the function of the brain," said Li-Huei Tsai, Director of MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory. "Understanding this resilience mechanism could be helpful when we think about therapeutic interventions or prevention of cognitive decline and neurodegeneration-associated dementia," Tsai added. The study appears in the journal Science Translational Medicine. The MIT team set out to try to figure how the environmental factors, such as education level, type of job, number of languages spoken, affect the brain at the neuronal level. They looked at human datasets and mouse models in parallel, and both tracks converged on MEF2 as a critical player. In two human datasets comprising slightly more than 1,000 people all together, the MIT team found that cognitive resilience was highly correlated with expression of MEF2 and many of the genes that it regulates. To study cognitive resilience in mice, the researchers compared mice who were raised in cages with no toys, and mice placed in a more stimulating environment with a running wheel and toys that were swapped out every few days. As they found in the human study, MEF2 was more active in the brains of the mice exposed to the enriched environment. These mice also performed better in learning and memory tasks. The findings suggest that enhancing MEF2 activity could help to protect against dementia, but, because MEF2 also affects other types of cells and cellular processes, more study is needed to make sure that activating it wouldn't have adverse side effects, the researchers said. (Agency) Read More► Psychiatric Disorders in Teens Linked to Social Exclusion in Later Life