Multitasking is a bad habit. Here are some tactics to help you regain your focus. Multitasking is just the way many of us live. How often do you text while stuck in traffic, lose track of a podcast while doing chores, or flutter between the news and your inbox? “We get stuck in this multitasking trap even without realizing that we’re doing it,” said Nicole Byers, a neuropsychologist in Calgary, Alberta, who specializes in ‘treating people with burnout. There are a few reasons for our collective habit, she added. Most of us avoid boredom if we can, Dr. Byers explained, and multi-tasking is a re ..read more

When it comes to brain health, keeping your weight stable may.be the most important task of all. Obesity, particularly when there’s lots of visceral fat present, is a risk factor for faster brain aging and Alzheimer’s disease, says Howard Fillit, M.D., cofounder and chief science officer at the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation. Belly fat has been shown to: Reduce blood flow to your brain, according to a 2020 study involving brain scans of more than 17,000 people.Researchers found that as weight went up, blood flow in the brain went down, including to areas vulnerable to developing Alzheim ..read more

The life phase may be an important risk factor in developing dementia. Across the United States, roughly six million adults 65 and over have Alzheimer’s disease. Almost two thirds of them are women  a discrepancy that researchers have long attributed to genetics and women’s longer life spans, among other reasons. But there is growing consensus that menopause may also be an important risk factor for the development of dementia later in life. Women going through the life phase, which is clinically defined as the end of fertility, face as many changes in the brain as in the ovaries, said Dr ..read more

Avoidance is linked to poor outcomes, but change is possible The worst procrastinators probably won’t be able to read this story. ‘It’ll remind them’ of what they’re trying to avoid, ‘psychologist’ Piers Steel says. Maybe they’re dragging their feet going to the gym. Maybe they haven’t gotten around to their New Year’s resolutions, Maybe they’re waiting just one more day to study for that test. Procrastination is “putting off to later what you know you should be doing now,’ even if you’ll be worse off, says Steel, of the University of Calgary in Canada. But all those tasks pushed to tomorrow s ..read more

Mouse studies hint at a way to treat age-related decline A single molecule may play a central role in rejuvenating aging brains, albeit in multiple ways, new research suggests. Studies in mice of three different techniques for combating the cognitive decline that accompanies aging found that they all increase levels of a protein called platelet factor four, or PF4. This in turn improved cognitive performance and biological signs of brain health, three research groups report August 16 in Nature Aging, Nature and Nature Communications. “PF4 may be an effective factor, and this kind of work will ..read more

In what seems like something out of a sci-fi movie, scientists have plucked the famous Pink Floyd song “Another Brick in the Wall” from individuals’ brains. Previously, researchers have used electrodes, computer models and brain scans to decode and reconstruct individual words and entire thoughts from peoples brain activity (SN: 6/3/23, P. 14). The new study, published August 15 in PLOS Biology, adds music into the mix, showing that songs can also be decoded from brain activity and revealing how different brain areas pick up an array of acoustic elements. The finding may eventually help improv ..read more

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Blocking the activity of certain cells reduces play behavior in rats. Rats are extremely playful creatures.They love playing chase and they literally jump for joy when tickled. Central to this play- fulness, a new study finds, are nerve cells in a specific region of the brain. Neurons in the periaqueductal gray, or PAG, are active in rats during different kinds of play, scientists report July 28 in Neuron. Blocking the activity of those neurons makes the rodents much less playful. The results give insight into a poorly understood behavior, particularly in terms of how play is controlled in the ..read more

A SURGE of brainwaves in two people who lay dying after their life support was turned off may help to explain the phenomenon of near-death experiences. The sensation of moving down a tunnel towards a bright light, reliving memories, and hearing or seeing deceased relatives have all been reported by people from many cultures who have had a brush with death. Some scientists, however, say these experiences could be caused by hallucinations as people recover in the hospital. Now, we have identified brain activity that could be behind these experiences. Ten years ago, Jimo Borjigin at the Universit ..read more

Controlling spinal fluid might help treat neurological diseases. Waves of cerebrospinal fluid that normally wash over brains during sleep can be made to pulse in the brains of people who are wide awake, a new study finds. Previous research has suggested that the clear fluid may flush out harmful waste, such as the sticky proteins that accumulate in Alzheimer’s disease (SN: 7/21/18, p. 22). So being able to control the fluid flow in the brain might have implications for treating certain brain disorders. I think this [finding] will help with many neurological disorders,” says Jonathan Kipnis, a ..read more